This was the first year since 1995 that I did not cook the Passover seder. The reason was that I'm still recovering (after four months!) from a medical problem I had just before Christmas 2018. I will get better, hopefully within another month, but I was not in position to do my usual annual shopping and schlepping…
I'm leaving World of Warcraft. I played the game from before the beginning, during its beta test prior to the game's formal release in November 2004. After putting time and energy and money into the game for 15 years, I feel like some nostalgia and introspection; hence this blog post. World of Warcraft (WoW) is part of…
It occurred to me that I've mentioned Horizon: Zero Dawn a couple of times in this blog, but my review of it never appeared here. For the sake of completeness and comparison, here are my reviews of Horizon: Zero Dawn and its expansion, Horizon: The Frozen Wilds. These reviews first appeared in a small members-only World of…
As some of you may know, I'm homebound for a few weeks and was looking for a game to pass the time. I found one: Final Fantasy XV. Before I get to my review, I have to address the elephant in room (though it's more like a T-Rex in a broom closet): The very first female character…
In the holiday season for the past several years, I've experienced a moment: The moment when I know that Santa came. I know that may seem a silly thing for someone of Jewish heritage and Wiccan practice to say. And to make it clear: I'm not talking about the tendency for Santa to show up at Yule…
Red Dead Redemption 2 is a massive simulation of the Old West around the beginning of the 20th century. It's an incredibly detailed game, loaded with quests, challenges, secrets, and several systems in which the world responds to how you play the game. You play Arthur Morgan, a member of the Dutch Van der Linde gang. Among…
I've played in World of Warcraft (WoW) since before its formal beginning; that is, I played in WoW beta test in 2004. When you start either a Human or a Dwarf character in WoW, you quickly learn about flying between the Human capital of Stormwind and the Dwarf capital of Ironforge. Your character flies on the back…
In past years I've voted straight down the Democratic Party ticket. The exception was when the Democratic candidate was also running as a candidate for a minority party (e.g., Working Families); then I vote for them under the minority ticket in an attempt to give greater voice to those who feel underrepresented. This year, I feel I'm…
Sometimes you only have one chance to make a good first impression. Shroud of the Avatar makes a lousy one. After spending a few hours with the game, I feel no desire to continue playing it. I didn't even get out of the starting area. Shroud of the Avatar (SotA) is a MMORPG (massively multiplayer on-line role-playing…
About a year ago, I posted my review of Economix, a graphic book that provides an overview of economic theory and practice through to about 2011. The author, Michael Goodwin, working with the artist Dan E. Burr, has occasionally posted additional comics on his website on topics like Obamacare and Net Neutrality. Recently, Goodwin and Burr have…