wee Photos & Video: Princess Halloween Display By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 28 Oct 2024 10:32:38 +0000 A hauntingly creative Halloween display, crafted by chef Ernie Ogalesco, is on display at the Hamilton Princess. Mr Ogalesco, known for his artistic flair and culinary expertise, first envisioned the display digitally, sketching out intricate designs on his computer before sharing them with the hotel’s executive chef and management for approval. The elaborate set-up was […] Full Article All Entertainment News Photos Videos #Cuisine #FairmontHamiltonPrincess #Halloween #HalloweenPhotoGalleries
wee Video: Bermuda Halloween Virtual Art Gallery By bernews.com Published On :: Thu, 31 Oct 2024 08:00:21 +0000 Bernews’ latest virtual art gallery features a whimsical Halloween collection with Bermuda tree frogs donning witch hats, pumpkins scattered across eerie landscapes, and a spooky Halloween onion by the beach. Dive into this playful fusion of island life and Halloween spirit for a truly unique visual treat. Related Stories Video: Bermuda Halloween Virtual Art Gallery […] Full Article All Entertainment News Videos #BernewsVirtualShows #GoodNews #Halloween #VirtualArtGallery
wee Photos: Fidelis & West Businesses Halloween By bernews.com Published On :: Fri, 01 Nov 2024 17:29:37 +0000 The Fidelis Partnership and 15 West Hamilton businesses hosted a festive Halloween celebration for the community. A spokesperson said, “For the first time since 2019, The Fidelis Partnership [TFP] and several businesses in the West Hamilton area joined forces to host a festive Halloween celebration outside their respective locations. This event brings together not only […] Full Article All Entertainment News Photos #BermudaBusiness #Halloween
wee Marcus Garvey Symposium Set For Next Week By bernews.com Published On :: Fri, 08 Nov 2024 11:08:35 +0000 The Jamaican Association [Bermuda] will host the Marcus Garvey Symposium at the Bermuda College Lecture Theatre next Thursday [November 14]. The event, which runs from 6 pm to 9 pm, will commemorate the anniversary of Mr Garvey’s 1928 visit to Bermuda. Jamaican Mr Garvey was the leader of the Pan-Africanism movement, which aimed to unite […] Full Article All Entertainment #CaribbeanRelations #Jamaica #JamaicanAssociation
wee Equestrian Welcome Home Show Next Weekend By bernews.com Published On :: Fri, 01 Dec 2023 14:25:32 +0000 The Bermuda Equestrian Federation announced that “its dynamic Welcome Home Show Committee will be hosting an exciting December horse show at the National Equestrian Center on 9th and 10th December.” A spokesperson said, “You may recall that, under the leadership of McKeisha Smith, the Welcome Home Show [WHS] Committee also successfully organized the equestrian ring […] Full Article All Sports #Equestrian
wee Joseph Weeks Wins National Globe Award By bernews.com Published On :: Thu, 14 Oct 2021 14:27:11 +0000 Bermuda College Technical Education Instructor Joseph Weeks has been awarded a National Energy Global Award by the international group, Energy Globe Foundation. The award comes as a result of his work and leadership on the College’s solar-powered Aquaponics Greenhouse Project, launched nearly three years ago. The project was among more than 2,500 projects from 180 […] Full Article All Environment News #BermudaCollege #Education #GoodNews #SolarEnergy
wee Outerbridge Named Male Athlete Of The Week By bernews.com Published On :: Fri, 13 Sep 2024 10:20:49 +0000 Following his recent victory in a 5K, Ryan Outerbridge has been named the Male Athlete of the Week by the Northeast-10 Conference. The Bermudian runner competes for Franklin Pierce University, and their report said, “The Northeast-10 Conference released its week one honors Tuesday and senior runner Ryan Outerbridge [Paget, Bermuda] earned Male Athlete of the […] Full Article All Sports #BermudaRoadRunning #BermudaTrackAndField #GoodNews
wee Cechini Finishes 4th In Weekend Invitational By bernews.com Published On :: Thu, 03 Oct 2024 09:24:14 +0000 Joseph Cechini finished 4th in the 2024 Family Weekend Invitational, Kiski School Cross Country Meet. Cechinin, representing Mercersburg Academy, covered the 5K distance with a time of 18:49.8. Related Stories Prunty Claims Victory At AXA Man On The Run Schindel Competes In OFSAA Championships Sean Trott Reflects On NY Marathon Display Nakeno Creighton Memorial XC […] Full Article All Sports #BermudaRoadRunning
wee Bermuda Karting Club Racing Weekend Results By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 15 Apr 2024 12:45:52 +0000 Speed returned to the Southside Motor Sports Park as the Bermuda Karting Club’s race day 13 took place. Brian Bulhoes won two of the three tag senior class races, with Nathan DeCosta winning the other, while Roman Wilkinson won all three tag junior class races. Scott Barnes took the checkered flag in all three races […] Full Article All Sports #Karting
wee Bermuda Karting Club Racing Weekend Results By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 29 Apr 2024 12:19:06 +0000 The final race day of the Bermuda Karting Club’s season took place at the Southside Motor Sports Park. Brian Bulhoes won two of the three tag senior class races, with J’Auza James winning the other, while Roman Wilkinson won two of the three tag junior class races, and Lucas Flood won the other. Jason North […] Full Article All Sports #Karting
wee Results: Bermuda Karting Club Week Two By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 28 Oct 2024 12:39:57 +0000 The Bermuda Karting Club’s 2024/2025 season continued at the Southside Motorsports Park, delivering a day of high-octane action. Nathan DeCosta demonstrated his mastery in the tag senior class, securing a clean sweep of victories across all three races. His dominance was mirrored by Syah Pedro in the tag junior class, who similarly claimed the top […] Full Article All Sports #Karting
wee Results: Bermuda Karting Club Week Three By bernews.com Published On :: Tue, 05 Nov 2024 11:58:59 +0000 The Bermuda Karting Club’s 2024/2025 race season saw the third race day at the Southside Motor Sports Park. William Dunkley won two of the three tag senior class races, with Jason Correia winning the other, Syah Pedro won all three races in the tag junior class races. Brian Bulhoes won all three L206 class races, […] Full Article All Sports #Karting
wee Crime Stoppers Weekend Film Experience By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 26 Feb 2024 20:37:14 +0000 Crime Stoppers Bermuda will hold their 7th Annual Weekend Film Experience from February 29 to March 2, 2024. A spokesperson said, “Crime Stoppers Bermuda is thrilled to announce the 7th Annual Weekend Film Experience, its premiere fundraising event, to be held from February 29 to March 2, 2024, at the Bermuda Underwater Exploration Institute [BUEI]. This […] Full Article All Entertainment Films/Movies #Film
wee B1 Weekend To Feature Screening & Discussion By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 16 Sep 2024 22:08:19 +0000 The B1 Empowerment Weekend on September 20-21, 2024, will feature ‘B1: The Movie’ screenings and discussions with filmmaker Dr. Ric Mathis. A spokesperson said, “On Friday and Saturday, September 20th and 21st, 2024, an empowering weekend has been planned for community engagement featuring a screening of the powerful film, B1:The Movie, and discussions with Atlanta […] Full Article All Entertainment Films/Movies #Film #FullLengthMovies
wee Tweet About Bermuda Olympic Team Goes Viral By bernews.com Published On :: Sun, 28 Jul 2024 11:53:10 +0000 [Written by Don Burgess] If you ask any non-resident what they know about Bermuda, they will normally say either the Triangle or our shorts. Practically every Olympic Opening Ceremony recognizes our island for wearing Bermuda shorts, but for Paris, the focus was on the Triangle. Buzzfeed News, in an article entitled ‘The 38 funniest jokes about […] Full Article All News Sports technology #2024Olympics #Bermuda2024 #DonBurgessReports #Olympics #SocialMedia
wee Assorted Calibers Podcast Ep 319: There is no Weer’d, only DODD! By www.weerdworld.com Published On :: Mon, 04 Nov 2024 10:00:14 +0000 Weer’d is feeling sick after his colonoscopy, but Erin, David, and Oddball have come to the rescue with an ACP Round Table. In This Episode We discuss: gun manufacturers handing over purchaser information taken from warranty cards to political groups; … Continue reading → Full Article Guns Podcast Politics
wee Another Classic Trek Actor On Lower Decks This Week By trektoday.com Published On :: Tue, 21 Sep 2021 18:16:13 +0000 Per the Star Trek On Paramount+ Twitter account, this week’s episode of Star Trek: Lower Decks will feature... Full Article Star Trek: Lower Decks
wee Between 4 And 6 Collisions Being Reported Daily By bernews.com Published On :: Tue, 01 Oct 2024 23:37:15 +0000 There are “between 4 and 6 RTCs being reported daily,” and the police are urging people to “slow down, always drive sober, do not drive when stressed or tired, put your phone down and please wear your seatbelt and fasten your helmet.” Acting Superintendent Robert Cardwell said, “By design, it was hoped that increased traffic […] Full Article Accidents and fires All News #Collision #Traffic
wee 36 Arrests Made During Cup Match Weekend By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 05 Aug 2024 17:47:41 +0000 “The policing plan implemented over the just concluded Cup Match holiday weekend, was in the main, successful in preventing any major criminal activity,” the police said, adding that there “were thirty-six arrests for various offences, the majority being for outstanding warrants.” A police spokesperson said, “However of particular concern, among them were ten persons arrested for […] Full Article All Crime News #CrimeInBermuda #CupMatch
wee Minister Weeks On Shooting Incident By bernews.com Published On :: Mon, 26 Aug 2024 01:44:08 +0000 “This was a heinous and cowardly act of violence directed at our police officers last night,” Minister of National Security Michael Weeks said. Minister Weeks said, “We are grateful that no one was hurt during this dangerous incident. This is a threat to law and order, and we must all do our part to bring the […] Full Article All Crime News #BermudaPolitics #CrimeInBermuda #Shootings
wee Mitchell Enjoys Modeling At NY Fashion Week By bernews.com Published On :: Wed, 27 Sep 2023 13:07:45 +0000 [Written by Stephen Wright] Aspiring model Nalia Mitchell had the experience of a lifetime strutting down the catwalk at the recent New York Fashion Week Festival. Mitchell was among a handful of Bermudians who successfully applied for the Model Experience, which allowed participants to walk the runway, connect with brands and designers, share the stage […] Full Article All Entertainment News Style & Beauty #BermudianModels #FashionShow #GoodNews
wee Minister Attends CTA Caribbean Week In NY By bernews.com Published On :: Fri, 21 Jun 2024 16:39:06 +0000 Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport Owen Darrell recently attended Caribbean Week hosted by the Caribbean Tourism Organisation [CTO] in New York from June 16 – 21, 2024. A Government spokesperson said, “This year’s event at the InterContinental New York Times Square, marked the organisation’s 35th anniversary. It brought together the region’s finest tourism representatives […] Full Article All News Politics #BermudaPolitics #BermudaTourism
wee BTA Highlights Bermuda Art Month’s Final Week By bernews.com Published On :: Thu, 24 Oct 2024 14:38:51 +0000 As Bermuda’s second annual Art Month draws to a close, the Bermuda Tourism Authority [BTA] “encourages both locals and visitors to take advantage of the ongoing exhibitions and remaining events that have made this celebration of Bermuda’s vibrant culture and creativity such a success.” A spokesperson said, “While October is nearly over, the exhibits at […] Full Article All Entertainment #Artists #BermudaTourism
wee Netflix Top 10 Week of Nov. 4: "Countdown: Paul vs. Tyson" Enters the Ring; "Meet Me Next Christmas" Unwraps #1 By www.thefutoncritic.com Published On :: Tue, 12 Nov 2024 12:06:00 GMT Season 2, Act I of "Arcane," the animated series based on the popular multiplayer online battle arena game League of Legends, also had a strong debut, taking second place with 6.3M views. Full Article
wee Strach, hnus a nahota v Aktech X: Projděte si vítězné snímky na téma HALLOWEEN. Který je váš oblíbený? By www.reflex.cz Published On :: Sun, 10 Nov 2024 16:00:00 +0100 Říjnové kolo soutěže Reflexu Akty X přináší jedinečnou kombinaci krásy a hrůzy – téma Halloween. Fotografové dostali příležitost propojit aktovou fotografii s prvky tajemna a horroru, což vyústilo ve fascinující galerii plnou odlišných přístupů jednotlivých umělců. Snímky říjnového kola odhalují škálu temných vizuálů, kde se krása lidského těla snoubí s ponurou atmosférou Halloweenu. Full Article
wee Halloween 2024 By www.google.com Published On :: Date: October 30, 2024 Location: Global Tags: Full Article
wee Freaky long weekend By www.oglaf.com Published On :: Sun, 25 Sep 2022 00:00:00 +0000 Full Article
wee 36 tweets by Darryl Cooper aka @MartyrMade on July 8 2021 on why Trump supporters believe the 2020 election was fraudulent By www.cpa-connecticut.com Published On :: Sat, 10 Jul 2021 02:54:18 +0000 Darryl Cooper, AKA @MartyrMade, is a podcaster who had a Twitter thread go viral with 13k retweets and 20k likes of the first Tweet alone. This one is 36-Tweets long. It makes very cogent arguments of not only why millions of Trump supporters believe the 2020 election was stolen, but also why we are justified to believe it. Continue reading → Full Article Accountants CPA Hartford Articles 36 tweets by Darryl Cooper aka @MartyrMade on July 8 2021 on why Trump supporters believe the 2020 election was fraudulent Big Tech Big Tech censorship censorship CNN collusion corporate press Darryl Cooper fraudulent election 2020 Hunter Biden July 8 2021 July 9 2021 mass political violence Media New York Post banned riots Steele dossier The corporate press is the propaganda arm of the Regime Time Mag Trump supporters Tucker Carlson Tucker Carlson Tonight July 9 2021
wee HELLOWEEN едут в юбилейный тур By www.darkside.ru Published On :: Wed, 13 Nov 2024 05:51:40 GMT HELLOWEEN вступают в свой юбилейный год, отмечая 40 лет истории группы и металла. Пока Andi Deris, Michael Kiske, Michael Weikath, Kai Hansen, Markus Grosskopf, Sascha Gerstner и Dani Löble интенсивно работают над продолжением своего сенсационного реюнион-альбома, они одновременно объявляют о юбилейном туре. Markus Grosskopf: «Мы придумали несколько отличных сюрпризов для поклонников. Помимо совершенно новых песен, которые будут исполнены впервые, мы также сыграем композиции из истории группы, которые вы не слышали вживую уже очень давно или даже никогда раньше. Концерты станут фантастическим опытом для всех нас!» Andi Deris: «Мы получаем огромное удовольствие от творческой работы в студии, и альбом обещает стать абсолютным событием — но ничто не сравнится с живым концертом HELLOWEEN: Энергия нашей аудитории просто неописуема, и мы не можем дождаться момента, когда мы наконец-то сможем снова выложиться на полную катушку вместе с нашими фанатами. Предстоящий тур будет более масштабным, более качественным и более впечатляющим, чем когда-либо!» Специальным гостем на концертах станут BEAST IN BLACK. В 2026 коллектив планирует отправится в Азию, Южную и Северную Америку, а также выступить летом на крупных европейских фестивалях: Oct. 17 - LU Luxembourg - Rockhal Oct. 18 - NL Tilburg - 013 Oct. 20 - UK London - Eventim Apollo Oct. 22 - FR Paris - Zénith (Le Villette) Oct. 24 - CZ Prague - O2 Arena Oct. 25 - SK Zvolen - Tiposbet Arena Oct. 26 - HU Budapest - Papp László Sportaréna Oct. 28 - PL Katowice - Spodek Oct. 31 - DE Bochum - RuhrCongress Nov. 01 - DE Hamburg - Barclays Arena Nov. 03 - NO Oslo - Sentrum Scene Nov. 04 - NO Oslo - Sentrum Scene Nov. 06 - FI Helsinki - Helsingin Jäähalli Nov. 08 - SE Gothenburg - Partille Arena Nov. 13 - PT Lisbon - Campo Pequeno Nov. 15 - ES Madrid - La Cubierta de Leganés Nov. 19 - IT Milan - Forum Nov. 20 - CH Zurich - The Hall Nov. 22 - DE Stuttgart - Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle #Helloween #SymphonicRock #Symphonic_Rock #PowerMetal #Power_Metal Видео: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dc9VZWH4H50 Full Article
wee Halloween Projects and Specials By www.evilmadscientist.com Published On :: Tue, 17 Oct 2023 00:32:43 +0000 It’s time for our annual reminder that we love Halloween! Our Halloween Project Archives is a great resource for inspiration and ideas. Halloween is one of our favorite holidays, and … we’ve organized dozens of our Halloween projects into categories: costumes, pumpkins, decor and food. Full Article EMSL Projects Halloween LEDs
wee Two Weeks With My New Knee By vickdogsblog.blogspot.com Published On :: Tue, 27 Sep 2011 00:14:00 +0000 It has been almost two weeks since my surgery and it has been boring. I have destroyed two and a half beds and let myself out of my crate one time before she put carabiners on the door. Also, I have destroyed one hard plastic cone,one nice soft cone that was borrowed and now my mom has to find a new one to replace it,one horrible blue donut thing from my last post, one pair of pants,and one stuffy. The stuffy was my reward for not destroying anything on Friday.I have not removed any of my sutures though. I'm sure everyone will be proud of me for that.Today my mom stayed home with me to talk on the phone, make faces at paper and stare at the computer all day. I got to go outside and spend some time helping her talk on the phone while staring at paper. It was nice and sunny so I nibbled on some grass, checked on some of the plants,and looked for my squirrel friend (without running over and looking up his tree).Ubas are meant for bouncing and running and having fun. There is nothing fun about all this sitting around in crates. I feel a whole lot better, my knee isn't acting so naughty and I keep telling her I'm healed, but she doesn't believe me. She says I have WEEKS more to go before I can jump and twirl and leap and play with my flirt pole. I only had a tibial crest transposition, a wedge recession sulcoplasty and lateral fascial imbrication. Can someone please tell her that my knee is all better now? hugs, Uba Full Article
wee 4 Weeks on the NYT Bestseller List!!! By sarahbethdurst.blogspot.com Published On :: Thu, 15 Aug 2024 14:16:00 +0000 OMG, it happened AGAIN!!! THE SPELLSHOP hit the NYT Bestseller List for the 4th time! At #13 this week! And hit the USA Today list for the 5th week in a row! Thank you all so much for making my dreams come true over and over and over and over again!!!https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2024/08/25/hardcover-fiction/ Full Article New York Times The Spellshop
wee 5 Weeks on the NYT Bestseller List!!! By sarahbethdurst.blogspot.com Published On :: Thu, 29 Aug 2024 14:20:00 +0000 It happened again. FIVE WEEKS ON THE NYT LIST!!! And on the USA Today list for seven weeks in a row! How is this possible?!? Thank you all so incredibly much for all the love you've shown THE SPELLSHOP. I am grateful beyond my ability to express. https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2024/09/08/hardcover-fiction/ Full Article New York Times The Spellshop
wee 6 Weeks on the NYT Bestseller List!!! By sarahbethdurst.blogspot.com Published On :: Thu, 05 Sep 2024 14:09:00 +0000 Six weeks on the New York Times bestseller list! And eight weeks in a row on the USA Today list! I'm overwhelmed. Thank you so much to everyone who took this story in and allowed it to mingle with your heart! https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/2024/09/15/hardcover-fiction/ Full Article New York Times The Spellshop
wee Happy Halloween! By sarahbethdurst.blogspot.com Published On :: Thu, 31 Oct 2024 14:09:00 +0000 Full Article
wee Board Game Review: Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig By www.thatswhatjennisaid.com Published On :: Thu, 13 May 2021 21:24:00 +0000 Years ago, on a snowy winter excursion to Bavaria, I took a tour of King Ludwig (Mad King Ludwig) II's castles. I really feel for the poor chap Ludwig II. He was very excited to be king and wanted to be a *real* king of the old order with power and dominion. Alas, he was born much to late in Germany’s evolution for such things and was reduced constitutionally to being a mere figurehead (such as Queen Elizabeth II is in England today). So he consoled himself by building castles throughout the countryside where he would escape and fully immerse himself in his pretend kingdom where all subjects worshipped him and did as they were told. Linderhof was one of the first castles he built and it was pretty modest so the taxpayers didn’t really bat an eye. This was the first stop on our tour. The same could not be said for his next building project: Castle Neuschwanstein. This grand and glorious castle (just up the hill from his parents’ country castle) was the castle to end all castles. He fancied he’d build himself a castle in medieval style (probably because that was a time when subjects dutifully respected their king or perhaps because it appealed to his alpha-male decorating sense) and he spent his way through a good portion of the national treasury before the impoverished taxpayers had enough and called shenanigans. The castle was never finished, King Ludwig II came to a premature end and within a year the political leadership had turned the castle into a tourist attraction. It was *this* castle, by the way, that Walt Disney held in his mind’s eye when designing the Disney Princess Castles. With the snow falling softly around it, it was truly an amazing site to behold. So beautiful!With the happy memories of the castle tour, I was drawn to Castles of Mad King Ludwig when it was released by Bezier Games a few years later. Another Bezier release – Suburbia – is in my top 10 list, so the positive track record with the publisher was another indicator that I’d probably enjoy Castles. After a bit of research, I found the general consensus in the board game community is that Castles plays so similar to Suburbia that it feels like a reskin of the game with a castle theme. Players purchase tiles from a market to build a great infrastructure, with various points awarded based on which tiles are used and how they are arranged. After this discovery, I actually didn’t follow through with the purchase, as I’ve never been one who is keen to get every iteration of a game. For example, I rarely keep both the card game and board game version of a given game in my collection – I force myself to pick one and let go of the other. Since Surburbia was so close to my heart, I let go of any ideas to purchase Castles.A year after Bezier released Castles, Stonemaier Games released Between Two Cities. In BTC, players draft tiles and then use them to build cities collaboratively with other players. We build one city with the player to our left and a separate city with the player to our right; each of our partners also contributes tiles to our respective cities in common. At the end of the game, all cities are scored and the lower scoring city of the two we helped build is assigned to us as our final score. The player with the highest score at the table wins. It’s a pretty unique approach to scoring and forces you to give both of your cities equal attention throughout the game. I don’t own a copy of this game either, mostly because I only began collecting Stonemaier games after I fell in love with Scythe in 2016, and have focused heavily on acquiring new releases (vs picking up their earlier games). In 2018, Stonemaier (in collaboration with Bezier) released Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig. This game is designed by Ben Rosset and Matthew O’Malley and it takes the best of Between Two Cities and Castles of Mad King Ludwig and marries it all together. Now we find ourselves at the game table, working to build two castles at once, simultaneously but separately collaborating with our left and right neighbors. At the beginning of each round, each player draws nine tiles, comprised of various indoor and outdoor room types. Each turn, we select 2 tiles to keep (one destined for the castle we are building with the player to our left and the other for the castle we are building with the player to our right). We pass the rest of the tiles to our neighbor (to the left in round 1 and to the right in round 2). Once everyone has selected their tiles and passed the leftovers, we begin collaborative discussions with each of our neighbors regarding the tiles we selected and where they should be placed within our castles. There are a few straightforward rules governing placement (for example, downstairs rooms can only be placed below the ground level) but generally the selection and placement decisions should be guided by maximizing victory point scoring. Also of note, when the third or fifth regular room tile of the same type is placed, a placement bonus is earned and redeemed immediately. These bonuses provide either additional tiles (including specialty room types) or bonus cards that award conditional victory points at the end of the game. After tile placement, the turns repeat in the same fashion three more times, except that on the last run, there is only 1 tile left after selecting two for placement and that tile is discarded out of the game. Round two begins, and follows the same process as the first round, with the only change being the direction the unselected tiles are passed around the table. In anticipation of the upcoming Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig expansion release (Secrets and Soirees), I received a review copy of the base game from Stonemaier. Opening the eye-catching box (with artwork by Agnieszka Dqbrowiecka, Laura Bevon, and Bartlomiej Kordowski), we inventoried the components (cardboard tiles, wooden tokens, plastic coated cards, and score sheets) and set up our first game. The rulebook was easy to follow (as it always is with Stonemaier) and the handy player aids included proved valuable as we worked our way through the game. There were five of us playing that first time, including two teenagers, and I was surprised to see just how varied each team’s castle was from the others. I worked really hard to give my all to both castles I was constructing, knowing that I would only score for the one that brought in the lower victory point total. I had to to correct my efforts a few times as it started to feel like one castle was building to a much higher score than the other. With both my neighbor on my left and right, I focused on bonus cards and tiles to increase point totals, whereas the competing castle builds leaned more heavily on amassing points directly through the regular room tiles. My strategy worked, and both of the castles I helped build were higher scoring than everyone else’s, giving me the victory even when taking the lower score of the two. In later games, my husband Chris and I played against each other, using the special 2 player rules in which a dummy player (“Ludwig” of course) is controlled by one of the players during the first round and by the other player during the second round. I focused on the same things in these two player games that I had previously at higher player counts. Meanwhile Chris focused almost exclusively on standard room tiles to accumulate points. Every time we played, the castle that Chris and I built together was by far the highest scoring one in the game (scoring highly on regular room tiles thanks to Chris and on bonus tiles and cards thanks to me), and my castle with Ludwig was runner up, giving me the victory again. I really really love this game. Much more than I thought I might, given its straightforward and simplistic mechanisms (I usually prefer complex strategy games). Pick two tiles and arrange, rinse repeat. Sounds like it should get boring fast, but it never does. I think the real draw of Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig, that keeps engagement and enthusiasm high even among experienced gamers, is the puzzle of having to work both castles at once. Dividing your time between two equally important projects simultaneously that will be scored against each other is a personal challenge, regardless of your skill level, because you’re competing against yourself. That’s genius, and I can’t think of another game I own that implements this kind of scoring. The only drawback to this scoring mechanism is that players who are significantly weaker in strategy or skill than the rest of the group will drag down the scores of their partners, giving a clear advantage to the remaining players who weren’t yoked to the underperformer. Tactfully, since the game scores average in the direction of the weaker player on each team, this is a game to play with a group of your intellectual peers, unless you want to stew in resentment over how irrelevant all of your hard work turned out to be when it came to scoring. In addition to the puzzle aspect of the game, the quick gameplay (less than an hour), family friendliness, and low level of analysis paralysis all help to make it an excellent go-to game, even on weeknights. I’m glad I gave Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig a chance on our game table, and our friends who played with us have already asked when they can come over to play again. I’m quite excited to see what the upcoming Secrets and Soirees expansion adds to the game. -------------------------------------------------Publisher: Stonemaier GamesPlayers: 2-7Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): About 45 minutes per gameGame type: card drafting, tile placement, set collectionRating:Jenni’s rating scale:OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it.OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game.OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME.NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me. Full Article board game reviews card drafting games set collection games Stonemaier Games tile placement games
wee Board Game Review: Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig Secrets and Soirees Expansion By www.thatswhatjennisaid.com Published On :: Tue, 07 Sep 2021 02:44:00 +0000 Between Two Castles of Mad King Ludwig is one of our board game library essentials. There’s a great puzzle aspect to the game, it plays in under an hour, it’s family friendly, and it keeps analysis paralysis to a minimum. It also plays up to seven players, filling that niche when so many other games are capped at 4 or 5. For all of these reasons, when the Secrets and Soirees expansion debuted, we knew we had to have it. The expansion offers additional room types for your castle, extra bonus cards, two new solo modes, higher player count (up to 8), and a new variant of head to head castle building where each player builds their own exclusive castle. My personal favorite bit of the expansion is the puppy room!!! Adorable little corgis, just like we have at home. We have played the expansion dozens of times. The first few months we had the game, we stuck to standard play, with everyone building two castles, and just focused on the fun of the new room types. These are activity rooms, secret rooms, and ballrooms. The activity rooms are thematically just that – clever little rooms themed around activities that give you points for each other room adjacent or penalize you if the listed prohibited room type is within the radius. The secret rooms are quite innovative. Each one has a little arrow printed on the tile pointing up, down, left, or right and takes on the same identity as the room indicated by the arrow, giving players a lot of flexibility based on placement in the castle. The ballrooms score points for specific room types in your neighbors’ castles. I really enjoyed these plays with the expanded room types and have not ever wanted to go back to playing with just the base game tiles again. More recently, we’ve explored the new variants provided by the expansion. The Mad King’s Demand variant has players each build a single castle instead of managing two castle builds at once. It solves the problem of weaker players bringing a section of the entire table down in scoring and it plays so much more quickly than the regular game, so it can be a good choice for player counts larger than two. While it’s also easier and smoother in a two player game to play this way versus playing with the 3rd NPC player normally required in a two player game, I’m much less fond of using this variant with two players. I like the extra tiles to choose from when a third castle is in the mix; it helps make it a bit more challenging and feels more interactive. The Automa solo mode is very easy to learn and it’s the most enjoyable solo game I’ve ever played because it feels like you’re actually playing against other players. I played on level 3 – normal difficulty – and won 58 to 55/55. I actually found myself wishing for longer rounds. The other solo mode (which is dubbed the Introvert variant and noted by the rulebook as technically not an Automa mode) feels less like a game against peers and more like a game of solitaire puzzling. It’s faster than the Automa solo mode and has the quirky hack of allowing you to force the NPC opponent to take a specific tile you don’t mind it having when there’s only one that meets the selection filter used to draft a tile for them. This is because, in this mode, the NPC follows an algorithm to pick between a tile you’ve marked as favored and desired for yourself and all the other tiles in demand under its selection filter that round. If there’s only one tile that meets the filter and you mark another tile you actually want, there’s a 50/50 chance you’ll lose your coveted tile to the NPC. However, if you mark the tile that meets the filter as if you wanted it for yourself, it’s forced to select it. Then you can choose whatever tile you actually prefer for yourself instead. The introverted solo mode is pretty great if you like that sort of thing, but I prefer the feeling of playing against others, so I’ll stick with the Automa solo mode, or competitive play against real life opponents. With a retail price of just $15 on the Stonemaier website, and having so much quality content in the box, the Secrets and Soirees expansion is a must-have. ------------------------------------------------- Publisher: Stonemaier Games Players: 1-8 Actual Playing Time (vs the guideline on the box): About 45 minutes per game Game type: card drafting, tile placement, set collection Rating: Jenni’s rating scale: OUI: I would play this game again; this game is ok. I probably would not buy this game myself but I would play it with those who own it and if someone gave it to me I would keep it. OUI OUI: I would play this game again; this game is good. I would buy this game. OUI OUI OUI: I LOVE THIS GAME. I MUST HAVE THIS GAME. NON: I would not play this game again. I would return this game or give it away if it was given to me. Full Article board game reviews card drafting games set collection games Stonemaier Games tile placement games
wee Somewhere Between Two and Twenty Four Things, Somewhere Between One and Twenty Three of Which are Elephants. By johnfinnemore.blogspot.com Published On :: Sat, 02 Dec 2023 23:14:00 +0000 Alt text: a cake, of sorts. Decorated, in a sense, to look like an elephant. Definitely. Full Article
wee Free National Park Weekend By natgeomaps.blogspot.com Published On :: Wed, 12 Aug 2009 21:38:00 +0000 This weekend is another FREE pass to our National Parks.Matthew Daly in Washington, D.C. Associated Press June 15, 2009The U.S. National Park Service is looking to stimulate summer vacations at national parks, starting this weekend.Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced earlier this month that entrance fees at 147 national parks and monuments—including the Grand Canyon and Yosemite—will be waived on three weekends this summer. The weekends are June 20 and 21, July 18 and 19, and August 15 and 16."During these tough economic times, our national parks provide opportunities for affordable vacations for families," Salazar said at a news conference at Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio."I encourage everyone to visit one of our nation's crown jewels this summer and especially to take advantage of the three free-admission weekends."Most Americans live less than a day's drive from a national park, Salazar said. Last year national parks attracted more than 275 million visits, generating an estimated U.S. $10.6 billion for local economies and supporting more than 213,000 jobs, he said.For the Park Service, the free weekends will mean a loss of an estimated half million dollars a day from entrance fees that range from $3 to $25. A total of 147 parks and monuments charge entrance fees. The country's other 244 parks are already free.Kendra Barkoff, a spokesperson for Salazar, said the lost revenue should be more than offset by an increase in park tourism. Many tour operators, hotels, restaurants, gift shops, and other vendors near national parks will offer other discounts and special promotions on the free-weekend dates, she said.The waiver applies only to entrance fees and does not affect charges for camping, reservations, tours, or concessions, Salazar said.Senator Max Baucus, a Democrat representing Montana, applauded the free weekends. Baucus has co-sponsored a bill that would cap park entrance fees at current rates unless approved by Congress. The bill also would limit fees on national forests and other federally managed lands."There is nothing better than spending a weekend in Glacier or Yellowstone, and to be able to do it without straining the budget is even better," Baucus said in a statement. "Folks should be able to enjoy our outdoor heritage without going broke."Kitty Benzar, president of the Western Slope No-Fee Coalition, a Colorado-based group that opposes fees on public lands, said Salazar's announcement was an admission that high fees are a deterrent to park visits."Twenty, 25 dollars does mean a lot to people," she said.Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Full Article
wee This halloween I am dressed as a withered husk, who was made this way by: Satisfactory 1.0 By radar.spacebar.org Published On :: Thu, 31 Oct 2024 22:35:04 -0400 OMG. I can't believe October is over already. I blame Satisfactory which, okay, I do get it now, and it did destroy my body and mind. I am inches from being done now; I just want to make sure that I finish it with enough force that I do actually put it away, as I could imagine tinkering with my saddest factory forever. The game isn't without flaw, but I think most of those flaws are not interesting to talk about. I do have one petty but important criticism, which is mildly spoilerful and anyway will only be interesting if you played the game. There is an object called the Somersloop ("cool S") which allows you to double the output of a machine. Canonically this item is some kind of "loop" and the flavor text talks about how it is able to create more energy than you put into it. So when I'm out hunting for Korok seeds I have this thought that maybe I could create a loop of factories whereby it would create infinite resources by repeatedly doubling. And I'm thinking about it but the crafting tree doesn't have any notable loops in it, but I remember the "packager" which allows you to put a fluid in a container or the converse, and I'm like: Yes, that's great! So I get back to base and I am doing this, just for fun to create an infinite fuel factory or whatever, and I realize that the packager just doesn't have a slot for a Somersloop. They must just hate fun, elegant twists. It would not break the game to allow this (you can always get infinite resources lots of other ways) or cause any other problem I can think of. Hmph! The thing about constructing a factory and watching it churn is that it's basically the same thing as a programming project that you invented for yourself, and it's probably better to do the programming project. Here's progress on my mysterious rectangle: Minusweeper 2 It's good progress if I do say so myself! Anything but black here is a Satisfactory result, which is 90.55% of them at this point. I may need heavy machinery for the remaining 9.45%, but that is part of the fun. I think that's really it for this month! Please vote in the US Elections if you can (but I guess also vote in any important elections. And obviously, vote for the good guys???). And happy Halloween! Full Article
wee Austin Ironman 70.3! (Race Weekend!) By greglsblog.blogspot.com Published On :: Thu, 22 Mar 2018 21:06:00 +0000 Okay, it's been a while, but I thought I'd finally post about the 2017 Austin Ironman 70.3 race weekend. :-). Like I mentioned in my last post, I felt fairly optimistic -- if anything I was a bit burned out on training. The big kicker, though, was that the weather was forecast to be 38 degrees race morning, which resulted in a bit of last-minute anxiety, mostly due to the mantra, "Don't do anything different on race day." That is, it is unwise in the extreme to test out new equipment or clothing on race day. Unfortunately, faced with the prospect of a 38 degree swim and bike ride (and the fact that it would warm up quickly), we had to make some last minute adjustments. The week before the race, I picked up a triathlon jersey that had sleeves, and borrowed some arm warmers from one of my training partners. Saturday morning, I went for a five mile test ride and realized I needed gloves, which necessitated a trip to Austin Tri-Cyclist, where I was not the only one making such a purchase :-). I was still a bit concerned about the swim, but I had a wetsuit, so I figured I'd done all I could do. Still, I was coveting one with sleeves... I next headed over to the Travis County Expo Center to pick up my swag bag, drop off my bicycle and gear, and check out the transition areas. Our happy faces before we get out of the car into the cold... Next morning, three of us drove out together and arrived in the cold dark of the Travis County Expo. Center at around 5:30. Did I mention that it was cold? Eventually, we got on the bus to take us to the staging area at Walter Long (Decker) Lake. There, we put on wetsuits, met up with our other training partners, and shivered a lot. Eventually, though, as the sun started to peak above the horizon, we lined up according to our projected swim times and prepared for the start of the race. I was still worried about the swim and the cold -- even though I was wearing socks (to be discarded just before start), my feet were starting to go numb and my arms were not happy either. But then it was time! I ran into the water and dived in as soon as I could. To my surprise, it was actually pleasant -- the water itself was around 68-72 degrees, so compared to the air temperature, it was balmy. The only real problem was that fog on the water and the glare of the sun were making it hard to see the buoys. About halfway through the swim I began thinking that the temperature really wasn't bad -- if anything, it was a bit too warm. Emerging from the water... But then I finished the swim and stood and was confronted by the reality of confronting an air temp of around 40 while being soaking wet. I grabbed my glasses from the special needs table and a nice man helped me get the wetsuit off. (This basically involved lying back on the wet ground, sticking my feet in the air and having him pull. Thank you, sir.). My time was a little slower than I would've liked, but I was fairly happy with it. I made it to transition, took a big swig of water, swallowed the contents of an energy gel pack, and put on my winter cycling garb. Then I was off! And it was frickin' cold. Contemplating that wind chill... It was this weird Catch-22 where you want to go as fast as possible (for the race, of course, but also so you warm up), but also kind of are thinking that if you slowed down a touch the wind chill wouldn't be quite so bad. I ended up spending the next hour shivering until the ambient temperature and I warmed up. Now, I actually kind of like the bike route -- it's mostly country roads with little traffic, and I rode the route about a half-dozen times in training. The problem with it is that a number of the roads are not exactly well=paved. Bumps and potholes and patches proliferate, especially on Monkey Road. In fact, the dip where it crosses a creek is so bumpy that by the time I got there, there were at least a dozen water bottle scattered on the ground. There were way too many hills, however :-). Beyond that, the ride felt fine, although my back began to hurt about halfway through -- I wasn't used to spending that much time in the aero position, so most of the second half of my ride was with hands on the brake hoods. I made sure to stick with my hydration and nutrition plan, so I felt pretty good by the end of it. Again, my time wasn't quite what I wanted it to be, but I was not displeased. By the time I finished the ride, it was around noon and fairly warm, so I took the time to change from my sleeved singlet to a sleeveless one (Ironman rules require that you wear a shirt). Starting to feel the legs... The run wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, although there were again too many hills :-). I was pleased at the number and size of the aid stations -- water, electrolyte drink (Gatorade, iirc), Clif energy gels, Coca-Cola, and Red Bull were all available. I was definitely feeling my legs, but my quads didn't feel like they were going to seize up like they had when I did triathlons in the 90s -- all that training paid off, I guess :-). I managed to make it through without slowing to a walk (other than at aid stations, because I can't drink and run at the same time) and ended up with a run time that was comparable to my stand-alone half-marathon times. At the finish line! My final time was 5:50:36, which I'm pretty happy about. My goal had been 6:00:00, although I did think that 5:45:00 was not out of the question. :-). Finisher photo! And medal! The gang... All in all, it was a great experience. I got out of my comfort zone, made some terrific friends, learned how to most efficiently change a bike tube, and never once thought, "I can't believe I'm paying to do this." (Okay, maybe once...). After the race! Celebrating the next day with Coach Peri! Full Article 70.3 Ironman races triathlon
wee Patrick Stein: Ray Tracing In One Weekend (in Lisp, and n-dimenions) By nklein.com Published On :: Fri, 27 Sep 2024 02:37:31 GMT Earlier this year, I started working through the online book Ray Tracing In One Weekend (Book 1). I have been following along with it in Common Lisp, and I have been extending it all from 3-dimensional to n-dimensional. I reproduced 4-dimensional versions of all of the book images which you can see on my weekend-raytracer github page. Here is the final image. This is a 250-samples-per-pixel, 640x360x10 image plane of three large hyperspheres (one mirrored, one diffuse, one glass) atop a very large, diffuse hypersphere. Also atop this very large hypersphere are a bunch of smaller hyperspheres of varying colors and materials. The image is rendered with some defocus-blur. Final image of 4-dimensional scene Caveat: This depends on a patched version of the policy-cond library that is not in the current Quicklisp distribution but should be in the next. Full Article
wee One Week E-Book Sale of Vacuum Flowers!!! One Full Week!!! By floggingbabel.blogspot.com Published On :: Tue, 15 Oct 2024 21:14:00 +0000 . Open Road Media, which publishes several of my e-books, has announced a one-week reduction in price of Vacuum Flowers. Starting this October 18 and running through October 25, 2024, it will be available for $1.99. That's in the US only.So if you're an e-book reader and have been curious about my novel... well, there you are.And if you don't already know . . .Vacuum Flowers is what used to be called a Grand Tour of the Solar System. Rebel Elizabeth Mudlark is operating off of stolen wetware and on the run from very dangerous people. She arrives in the inner system on a cometary orbit, which takes her through a great variety of human and post-human societies, including the most dangerous one of all--Earth.That bit about the cometary orbit is not incidental. Comets enter the Inner System on either a hyperbolic or a parabolic orbit. The one is open, the other closed. I knew that the book would end with Rebel Elizabeth Mudlark standing in the stardocks with a coffin at her feet. But I didn't know if the person within the coffin would be alive or dead or if REM would someday return to the Inner System or was leaving it forever. I only decided that when I came to write the last page.* Full Article
wee My Halloween Season Story, "Unquiet Graves," in CLARKESWORLD By floggingbabel.blogspot.com Published On :: Fri, 01 Nov 2024 20:24:00 +0000 . I am always happiest when a story of mine comes into print. Today, I have the joy of introducing you to "Unquiet Graves," a seasonal tale of graveyard misbehavior and betrayal. Oh, and there's nothing supernatural about it at all.You can read the story here. But if you're like me, you'll just go to Clarkesworld, look over the table of contents, and decide which story you want to read first. Mine by preference, but follow your whim. And for those who like trivia . . .I came up with the handheld's app many long years ago and it took forever to come up with a story for it. You'll notice that it is left unnamed in the story. That's because its secret name was "The Graveyard Reader." Which is the title of a well-known story by Theodore Sturgeon. While I was writing the story, I thought of it as "The New Graveyard Reader." But Sturgeon's story and mine go off in totally different directions, and giving mine (or even the app) a title suggesting there was some implicit connection between the two would only cause confusion.The title I finally came up with was derived from "The Unquiet Grave" by that most prolific of all poets, Anonymous. If you look it up, I suggest you do so after reading my story. It gives away some of the plot.* Full Article
wee ‘Sexiest man alive’ is... alweer niet zo sexy: John Krasinski pronkt op cover van ‘People’ - Het Laatste Nieuws By news.google.com Published On :: Wed, 13 Nov 2024 08:00:16 GMT ‘Sexiest man alive’ is... alweer niet zo sexy: John Krasinski pronkt op cover van ‘People’ Het Laatste NieuwsActeur John Krasinski is volgens People meest sexy man ter wereld NU.nlJohn Krasinski uitgeroepen tot meest sexy man op aarde Het Nieuwsblad Full Article
wee Spanje bereidt zich voor op nieuw noodweer: code rood in Malaga en Tarragona, weerdienst waarschuwt voor ‘extreem gevaar’ - De Morgen By news.google.com Published On :: Wed, 13 Nov 2024 06:38:00 GMT Spanje bereidt zich voor op nieuw noodweer: code rood in Malaga en Tarragona, weerdienst waarschuwt voor ‘extreem gevaar’ De MorgenSpanje zet zich schrap voor nieuwe ‘DANA’: code rood in Malaga en Tarragona, al 3.000 mensen geëvacueerd Het Laatste NieuwsOpnieuw code rood voor regen in delen van Spanje: “extreem gevaar” in Malaga en Tarragona Het NieuwsbladEvacuaties in Valencia door instortingsgevaar 50 appartementen De MorgenSpaanse weerdienst waarschuwt opnieuw voor noodweer: “Zeer sterke en aanhoudende regen” De Standaard Full Article
wee Tom Brady’s 3 Stars of Week 10: Lamar Jackson, Ja'Marr Chase, Leo Chenal | DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE By www.foxsports.com Published On :: Wed, 13 Nov 2024 02:09:54 +0000 Tom Brady gave his 3 stars of Week 10 which included Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson, Cincinnati Bengals WR Ja'Marr Chase and Kansas City Chiefs LB Leo Chenal. Full Article nfl