Baking failure

For some reason, I just can't seem to make decent cookies.

Rewind about 15 years - I could make any cookie and it was amazing. Kept it up for years. But now, utter disaster. The sugar cookies are never chewy enough, the chocolate chip cookies are uneven, I could go on.

I have a batch of cookies nearby that are *ok* I guess. I'm in a different kitchen, using different tools, and I'm trying to do this without my four kids knowing about it.

I blame everything but me.

The prep

Living in the town I grew up in, along with all my siblings, I see them all the time. Holidays don't feel *extra* special because nobody traveled to see anyone.

Unless we leave.

Of my siblings, my sister travels the most. My brother in law has family spread around, and holidays are as good a reason as any to venture out and see some.

My wife's family is much the same. Thing is we don't always travel. The last time her entire family was together was Christmas 2008. We've seen them all since then, just not at the same time. The talk among her siblings began a year ago. This year, they meet again.

...should be interesting.

The earliest

Having a 5am drop off at the airport is the best way to guarantee you'll be at work an hour and a half early.

At least I have a key.

Gratitude

Thanksgiving is two days from now. I'm grateful that I've never had to host a lot of people, and that I've never had to cook for a large crowd with diverse preferences and allergies.

I'd probably deep fry the turkey in peanut oil and tobasco, just to be safe.

First snow

It happened. The first snowfall of the season. The inaugural meeting of the summer tires club will take place in the grass on the outside curve of the off ramp. Both lanes on the highway have been merged into one (just ignore the lane lines), and we recommend you go 30mph with your hazard lights on. Braking randomly is allowed and encouraged.

As is customary, the snow plows will hold back until everyone has arrived at work. You don't get the day off.

Eight

Today was my second son's 8th birthday.

He turned 8 on the 8th. Also known as the golden birthday. My other kids were born on the 28th, 20th, and 26th. They can do whatever they want. But I had my 8 year old, and his mother was going to make sure it was worth it.

He was happy. But gold cupcakes seemed like a stretch.

RetroGameCon 6

So my town plays host to a convention called RetroGameCon. If the title isn't screamingly obvious, it's a convention surrounding old school gaming, and literally everything surrounding it. The games, the creators, voice actors, gamer culture, and thousands of random knick knacks and artwork hanging off the side.

It's my childhood packed into a convention center. This is the third year I've gone, and it's...

Ok, you really can't add more to retro. There isn't more new old stuff... at least not always. I met a game developer that was still making games for the Colecovision. A 36 year old console is still getting brand new games published. This guy has, so far, published more games for this old thing than Coleco Industries ever did.

Besides looking at some very old hardware and the uncalled for price tags on them (maybe if it was mint), meeting game developers and talking with them about what they're working on is always fun. They're exactly my flavor of nerd, and they're really into what they do. I'm not a programmer by any stretch, but I know what works in these things.

Also I won a raffle and got free stuff, so yay.