[RPG] Check this out instead

No RPG material today. I'm busy finalizing the last minute details of a benefit for a local gaming couple.

Details here 

[40K] Sometimes, the game is just pretty

I showed up to my 40K night the other day, and one of my regulars was showing off his new toys. He had amassed a very large selection of figures for a theme army and wanted everyone to see them.

Pictures don't quite do this justice- there's a lot of shine and reflection taking away from the detail and lovely work he put into this army- but I really want to showcase his work.

Long shot of the whole army.

A narrower look at the oncoming mass.

Hey look! Skimmers and dreads!

I love the feel of the army- the different poses really helps it have a personality.

Who doesn't love a wheelie?

The bank on this is just super cool.

Ever hear of flanking? Yeah, these guys have it.

Better Late Than Never

I knew it was coming... I just forgot to announce it and all that stuff.

My blog is officially 1 year old- 2 weeks ago.

I've been on kind of a slowdown for a little, and didn't feel good about celebrating the fact that I haven't blogged terribly consistently lately...

but who cares? It's my blog and I've been talking about games and all of the things that amuse me here for over a year now!

I'm debating a couple of thoughts, elements, ideas and so on for y'all... Maybe having a laptop and wireless will help me get writing again.

Be Well,

'Lo

[BIRTHDAY] Contest Results!

I want to thank each and every one of you for your fabulous, wonderful, generous wishes for my birthday. It was absolutely spectacular, and I enjoyed every minute of it. I woke up to find a Storm Raven with my name on it, and it just got better from there. (How that's possible, I'm not really sure- but it did!)

Friends and family helped me celebrate in style and I have to say- I really, truly, honestly NEEDED a day of just ridiculous, over-the-top spoiling like I got. I've been burning the candle at both ends (and in the middle too) for a while. Having a day where I got and did what I wanted was .... well.... really nice.

Now, to the meat of the matter- the contest!

Each of your entries was interesting and fun in some way. Each of you took time out of your busy, crazy lives to share something with me- an aspect of me they saw, an idea they wanted to pass on, some token or treasure they had in their head. That alone was a pretty darn good present, and on top of it, the entries were great!

Contest #1- Most of you understood how much I love words, and played with them to encapsulate my personality and blog into a short snippet. Before I announce the winner, I'll share the entries:


1) This in iteslf is wonder...

2) Inspire yourself to wonder...

3) World of Wonder: Proving unicorns exist since (insert year you started gaming/year you were born/random year/random 4 numbers here)

4) Wench waxes whimsical; war, wifecraft, witch with words; wonders woven weekly.

5) Wondrous and Loquacious Ramblings and Reflections on a Wide Variety of Words

6) Wherin you can find the thoughts and reflections of a wife, mother, and gamer

7) Boardgames and Roleplaying-games: Musings and Reflections of a Wife, Mother, and Gamer

8) Gregarious Girl’s Guide to Good Gaming and Gushing Graciousness & Making Modern Motherhood Mostly Manageable.

9) Genuine Gopher Gaming Girl Gets it done with Weird Wacky Wild Wonderful Words

10) Audacious, bodacious, tenacious, veracious, Loquacious.

11) What has two thumbs and is awesome? THIS BLOG!!

12) Global domination is not just a game for men.

13) Where wizards, warriors, werewolves, witches and wyverns are warmly welcomed with words of whimsy.

14) Whimsical wanderings with wizards, warriors, werewolves, witch hunters, wyverns and words.

Some of these made me laugh- HARD. A couple were favorites right away. I decided to enlist the help of TheGirl (remember, she's distracted by shiny things) and TheDude. Both of them voted on the same entry, which was one of my favorites. Clearly, we had a winner!

Who is it?

Chris D with his entry of: World of Wonder: Proving unicorns exist since (insert year you started gaming/year you were born/random year/random 4 numbers here)

I'm sticking in 1985, the year I started gaming. I love the nod to the absurd here, as well as the acceptance of the strange complexity of the female gamer. Plus, it's FUN!

This winner had a close competitor with Porky's entry -


Audacious, bodacious, tenacious, veracious, Loquacious.

I love the rhyme, the playfulness, the intent, and most of all the accuracy of all the words used here to describe me. I'm keeping it to use in another place in my blog, many thanks to Porky.

Onto the banner contest:

 

I have to say that this was truly difficult for me- I love two of them very, very much. Both of the designers in question are thoughtful and considered me and my blog very seriously. Both of them captured an element of “me” that I found more than a little surprising.

Here's the “runner up”- What I liked most was that the designer was more than willing to change the eye from blue to brown at my request. My eyes are brown, and if I'm sharing my perspective, my viewpoint, if you will – with you, I'd like the eye to be brown.

Thor over at Creative Twilight did an amazing job, and with his permission, I'm using the banner for my Weekly Whimsy posts on Sunday. I like this so much, I can't help but smile when I see it- and I would love to share that simple joy and wondrous perspective with you on a regular basis.

I think in the end, what helped the winner come out on top was that he emailed me privately. He asked permission to use something he saw on the blog as an element of his banner- and without knowing it, he touched on something truly special to me.


Here's the winner (without the new motto):

DaMastaCheef over at DLWDG designed this for me. What sold me on it was the use of the lily.

He had no idea, but that lily is beyond special. It's my daily reminder of who I am, my place in this world, and why I'm “H” and not someone else. The lily is one of a bouquet sent to me several years ago. The Dude didn't have a reason- he just wanted to say he loves me. He knew I'm allergic to nearly every kind of flower under the sun, but not lilies- and that I love them. He had them delivered to me at work, at a time when I was the receptionist and everyone in the building would see them.

The Dude's not a terribly romantic type, so flowers are a BIG, BIG, BIG deal. The amount of thought and consideration he put into those flowers is a treasure to me. The knowledge that I mattered that much to TheDude was something I couldn't forget. I've mentioned before that I scrapbook (or used to) and I made a beautiful little book with pictures of those lilies.

Using a picture of the lily as my avatar was my own way of keeping the scrapbook with me, even on the 'net. It's my way of showing The Dude that I remember and understand “us”.

The use of the lily in the banner was an extravagant way for me to show my Dude that he's part of everything I do- even the stuff I do on my own. Thanks, DaMastaCheef!

I'll have the new banner with the new slogan on the site soon (tomorrow, I hope!). Until then, send a big congrats out to the two winners and know that I had a blast sharing my birthday with you. 

[BIRTHDAY] Contest!!!! Is closed

Thanks for all your entries!!!!

Winner to be announced SOON.

Also, just wanted to tell you that I got my first present so far very early this morning.

The Dude, The Girl and The Boy got me the Storm Raven Gunship! I am still debating on BA, but I honestly don't care about whether I actually PLAY with it. It's another big red model to paint! WOOHOO!!!!

Happy birthday to me!

[BIRTHDAY!] CONTEST!!!! Update

Hey folks,

There are only a couple more days to enter. I got some BANGIN' entries in the past couple days and I am telling you, Iam glad to be a part of this community more and more each day based on the work I'm seeing. I can't wait to close the contest and give some great stuff away!

Reminder, the contest closes at 10:00AM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, Sat February 12. (Yes, that's my birthday.) Send your entries by email (available in my profile) and good luck!

Drawing Winners and a New Arrival

Follower Random Drawing Winners to be revealed! 

So I went ahead and took all the names on my Blogger Follower list yesterday- I think it was 103 names in total, although a few appear to be dupes or jokes. I printed them out onto paper and cut the paper into strips, folded them up, and drew two names. [BTW, I got some great slave labor out of TheGirl, who is also helping judge the main contests. PS: She is 14 and easily excited, amused and distracted. SHINY contest entries are accepted gleefully on her behalf.] 

The winners are:

Greg Christopher

and

GDMNW

Congratulations! A newer addition and a long time reader are both represented with these two fellows, and I'm excited to share my World with all involved. Thanks for stopping by- you make this all worthwhile!!!!

Please email me (available in my profile) with some sort of header (ie Contest winner, Drawing Winner etc) to let me know how to get you your goodies. Deadline to hear from you will be Friday, February 11 by 9:00PM Central Standard Time, or I draw replacement names until 2 sets of goodies are given away. 

In other news, I am proud to introduce the newest addition to my Crusade, The Emperor's Champion. He comes to me courtesy of Von, all the way from the UK. He's a beast- and he has a BIIIIIIIIIIIIG sword.


Here he is!

He's making friends with my Templar crew now, whipping them into Ecclesiastic frenzy while telling them of his mighty exploits against Ork Warbosses, FarSeers, a Chaos Lord and more.

I can't wait to bring him to 40K night and lay the smacketh down. Yay! THANK YOU VON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Be Well,

'Lo

100!

I hit 100 followers today!


I also got a fantastic present in the mail from a far away friend. (Pictures forthcoming on Saturday, when I announce the winner of the follower drawing.)

Thanks for joining in my madness.

I've never wanted to be wealthy- I just want to be wonderful.

Be Well,

Lo

[BIRTHDAY] Contest!!!! Update AGAIN

Hey folks,


After some consideration, I have decided to have a RANDOM DRAWING once I reach 100 and 101 followers so that everyone gets a chance at some goodies. I mean, why not offer my loyal readers a chance at some loot as well as the new folks? SO, once I get 100 followers, and then 101, I'll hold a drawing for some fun giveaways.

I also wanted to point out that my WOD page is up and fully functional. It's ready to explore!

[BIRTHDAY] Contest!!!! Update and Big News Revealed

I'm at 93 followers last I checked- only 7 away from my goal of 100 by my birthday. I'm excited about all the new readers and I hope I can bring you some fun stuff to keep you here! (Thanks for reading!)


There were no new entries into the contest this week- that's ok, there are still 10 days to enter.
Here's a recap of the contest and all the details for those that might be late to the party!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Contest 1 - Intended for the Wordy Folks (RPG players, language majors, word nerds)

Come up with a Motto/Slogan for World of Wonder.
Use 15 words or less to describe me and my blog. Funny, witty, and alliterative entries encouraged.

Contest 2- Intended for the Visually Minded (Graphic designers, artists, folks that play with computers)

Come up with a Banner for World of Wonder. ( 950x200-450 in size)
Use graphics, images, drawings or other visual media to convey my personality and my blog. Using references from older posts, repeating themes of posts or comments, or ridiculous riffs on stuff I've said are welcome.

What are the rules? 
1- No more than 4 entries per entrant. I don't care if they are all in the same contest or spread out over both, but you only get 4 chances.

2- It's my blog, and my birthday. I pick the winner of each contest with my own personal metrics.

3- You had a month to enter! Entries must be sent by email (available in my profile) and received by my birthday: 10:00 AM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, Saturday, February 12, 2011.

What do I win? 

I am working on an awesome looty prize for each winner- but because it's a birthday, the presents are a surprise.They will most likely have some relevance to miniatures and/or roleplaying in some way. It's entirely possible I will tailor the prizes to match the entrant, but I am not telling yet.


------------------

Last week I said I would give a couple sneak peeks at the prizes. I'm still keeping it a surprise, but here's the first hint at the possibilities:

it could be one of these

Or maybe one of these

There are a lot more possible options. How am I able to do this? Well... I have connections. As in,

My husband (The Dude) and I OWN Armored Gopher Games. 


My little vacation this past weekend was to attend a local convention and sell some goodies to our friends, loyal customers, and new folks that are now part of our growing community. We love games and sharing them with others is part of our passion. A highlight of our weekend was the demo of DUST Tactics, the AT-43 "light" game from Fantasy Flight. One of our regulars showed off his copy to anyone who was willing to sit down and play. As a thank you to those who checked it out, our store gave some great swag away.

The INSIDE of Dust Tactics- a DEAD Sexy game

Because it's my birthday, I'm doing it again- giving away fun stuff to those that are part of my community. My blog is not really intended to be focused on on the store- but the store is a huge part of my life, and I want to share it with you. I hope you will join in my fun ramblings, and take part in the many adventures yet undiscovered!

[ A special shout-out to those of you who have known and kept it quiet at my request. I really appreciate your understanding and consideration to my feelings. It's meant a lot to me and I am glad to have you as part of my "family". ]

My blog is still all about my Weird, Wonderful, Womanly World- and all the things in my head. I've finally settled on a posting schedule (changed and revised to picking up another "day job") and hope to bring you some really awesome material in the days, weeks, months and more to come.

Don't forget to send your entry into the contest! Also, a special goodie for my 100th and 101st followers!

Thanks so much for your great feedback, advice, commentary and everything else you add to my wonderful online community. Please chime in with your thoughts, questions, comments and other musings about the contest and the news- I'm always glad to reply.

be Well,

'Lo

[Birthday] Contest!!!! Update

Hey guys & gals,

I've gotten yet another fantabulous entry for the contest this past week. The prize support pool just got better due to the generous support of another job, and I'm cruising along until the day I get to announce the winners.

I'll be back next week with a sneak peek at the prizes. You won't want to miss out!

REMINDER- Entries are due by 10:00AM Saturday, February 12, 2011   don't be late!

[Birthday] CONTEST!!!! Update

Only three more weeks to enter! Don't miss out on this birthday party in reverse, where I give the presents to you! I am still keeping the prizes a secret for now, but never fear- there are no duds!

I have received eight really lovely banner entries. Some of you have breathtaking imaginations that translate truly well to the visual realm. Each one is really great in its own regard- please keep it up. 

I have also been fortunate to find three excellent motto submissions in my inbox! Don't overlook the power of words, especially not to a self-professed word nerd. All the entries are well done. I can't wait to see what else you readers might have up your sleeves!

Thank you to each and every one of you that has entered so far! I've really loved your fantastic submissions.

Speaking of readers, I hit 90 followers recently. Only 10 more to go to hit 100, my personal goal to achieve before my birthday. I'm pretty thrilled and hope to bring you all kinds of great stuff to read. Never fear, roleplaying fans, I have a TON of good material on deck for you.

If there's something you'd like to see me cover, please feel free to send suggestions to me via email or comments here... I'm giving stuff to YOU, so let me know what you want!

Don't forget to send your entry by email (available in my profile) by 10:00 AM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, February 12, 2011.

Good luck!

[Birthday] Announcing a CONTEST!!!

My birthday is coming up soon! Instead of getting presents, I decided to give stuff away. 

As a reward for following along my little corner of the blog world, I will have a contest. It's actually a two part contest, intended to touch on both of the 'major" sides of my gaming life.

This is also a not-at-all-shameless grab for readers! I hope to break 100 followers before the contest is over. A special goodie will go to my 100th and 101st follower!

Contest 1 - Intended for the Wordy Folks (RPG players, language majors, word nerds)

Come up with a Motto/Slogan for World of Wonder.
Use 15 words or less to describe me and my blog. Funny, witty, and alliterative entries encouraged.

Contest 2- Intended for the Visually Minded (Graphic designers, artists, folks that play with computers)

Come up with a Banner for World of Wonder. (EDIT: 950x200-450 in size)
Use graphics, images, drawings or other visual media to convey my personality and my blog. Using references from older posts, repeating themes of posts or comments, or ridiculous riffs on stuff I've said are welcome.

What are the rules? 
1- No more than 4 entries per entrant. I don't care if they are all in the same contest or spread out over both, but you only get 4 chances.

2- It's my blog, and my birthday. I pick the winner of each contest with my own personal metrics.

3- You have a month to enter! Entries must be sent by email (available in my profile) and received by my birthday: 10:00 AM CENTRAL STANDARD TIME, Saturday, February 12, 2011.

What do I win? 

I am working on an awesome looty prize for each winner- but because it's a birthday, the presents are a surprise.They will most likely have some relevance to miniatures and/or roleplaying in some way. It's entirely possible I will tailor the prizes to match the entrant, but I am not telling yet.

--I totally promise they will NOT! be lame-- Be assured that if you win, you'll get something wonderful... because it's my world, and I love to bring out the childlike wonder all around me.

I'll do a weekly post with updates on number of entries and what kinds of fabulous goodies you might win as the month goes on. Spread the word- I want this to be kind of like a virtual party, and the more, the merrier in my book!

I look forward to whatever entries might come in- and good luck!

[40K] Beginner's Project: Advice

I put a lot of stuff onto the Beginner's Project page. I hope to have some time in the next day or couple to organize some of it and get it into an easier to use format.

I have gotten a LOT of fantastic advice from you guys- you've been so generous and helpful, I really appreciate it. I have to admit I'm considering teaching TheGirl once I get a lid on 40K, as she LOVES blowing stuff up without exception. I think she might like BA or DE (either faction really fits her personality- a scary thing to say) but that's a  LONG way off.

I know most of the advice you guys have given me has been in response to a specific question; but I'd love to hear your generic, single best offering so I can add it to the Project. {PS: I'm working on a button or banner, but I stink at it so don't sue me if it's awful}

So, please chime in: What's your single best comment or advice for a brand new player starting out?

Have at it, guys!

[Blogging] 12 in 7!

12 new followers in 7 days. That's over a 40% increase in calculable readership in just a week's time.

I'm quoted on Brent's blog- TWICE! [Not that I'm stalking...]

I got hit as an honorable mention at  iHOP's Haiku contest (and not at all shameless beg for content), made Weekly TopX and came in as a "winner "(?) of the most embarrassing story gig there too.

I'm seeing a lot of wonderful, insightful and generous commenting. I've been exposed to some fantastic writers, thinkers, gamers and just cool guys [with a gal or two thrown in there, too] over the week or so. I'm trying to comment on all of your great posts- I may have to get to you still. I promise I'll get there!

I'm beyond flattered and honored that you're checking out my little corner of the internet.

I have a really fun topic for Weekly Whimsy tomorrow, so stay tuned! 
Please feel free to drop me a note and tell me how you found me, what you like, and what you want to see more of [totally ended with a preposition and I just don't care].

be well...

Loq

[IHoP] bangin'!

My honorable mention haiku(s)

It's a great world here
Brent and Lauby swear for us
we owe fealty

weekly top x great
shout outs and webby findings
could be yours awesome

it's a man's world here
girls game with hearts thunder
check World of Wonder