My rowing machine has a game on it. It’s kind of like Frogger but with fish of varying sizes instead of cars, trucks, and logs. The American Red Cross sent me a #DonorForLife “Halfway to my (2 gallon) Milestone” electronic badge to share on social media (Schedule your donation today. Save Lives.) And when I was at the U.S. Post Office last week, I turned around and saw a poster promoting the soon-to-be-released D&D Forever Stamps!
Games and game culture are everywhere, and although I’m not a TTRPG player, I love being gamer-adjacent. Here are some reasons why:
I perfected chocolate chip cookie baking. For YEARS, Martin ran campaigns for our boys and their friends on Sunday afternoons—until, of course, the boys ran their own games. Those cookies lasted maybe a full minute once I put them on the table. But, the roars of laughter still ring in my ears.
I have more than a decade’s-worth of Cardhalla (and balloon sculpture) photos from GenCon. The kids spent hours building card towers taller than they were, and in their younger years, they’d get to stay up past bedtime to throw loose change and knock everything down—for a good cause.
I have learned about crowdfunding, trademarks, patenting, and obtaining ISBN and UPC numbers. That wasn’t on my BINGO card. It’s been awesome helping our Gaming Honors creative team launch new projects.
Cool people baked chocolate chip cookies for me (and the team) and delivered them to the Gaming Honors booth (167) at GenCon. I’m talking about you @jocestitch and @dicestationzebra. Thank you.
I am a superstar on a Twitch.tv show Honor Among Thieves. (That also wasn’t on my BINGO card.) Consequently, I tell jokes, tease my husband and his gaming group, and laugh with my sisters-in-law @littlesister303 and @merfherself at least every two weeks.
Being gamer-adjacent is all about loving family and friends who happen to love TTRPGs. And it’s about being open to new experiences and new, dare I say… adventures.