February always sneaks up on me. Often I haven’t quite recovered from the holiday pandemonium, and, in a blink of an eye, January is over and it’s February — which is littered in ALL THINGS PINK. Don’t get me wrong — I love romance, love and all that wonderful stuff, just not when it’s forced down your throat at every single corner of the world. Plus, aren’t we supposed supposed to show our love and appreciation year-round anyway?
So I turned 36 last Sunday. Eeeeks. I can’t even fudge it a bit and say I’m in my early 30s. It’s all good. I’m here to officially embrace my late 30s. And I’d like to think I don’t look like I’m 36. (Don’t answer that). Anywho …. I celebrated with my framily (my Phoenix friends who are my family), and my board-gamer peeps. And what’s the best way to celebrate? With food, desserts and a Takenoko Tournament!
So I’m a total sucker for all things cute … and giant pandas are no exception. Takenoko itself is a solid medium-heavy game that I’m always down to play, so when I saw an online deal on the Takenoko Collector’s Edition last year, I quickly jumped on that cuddly bad boy. It quite possibly is the largest chunk of change I’ve spent on one. single. board. game. And honestly, I have no regrets …
And I’m back! I took some time off to celebrate my birthday in two states — California and Arizona. I enjoyed spending time with my family and then with my BFF kicking back to awesome bands at the Kaaboo Music Festival. We had a blast and are already seriously thinking about going next year. When I got back to Phoenix, I celebrated this past weekend with my friends by grubbing and playing board games at a house party.
I’m not a video gamer by any means (though some friends think it’s right up my alley with the amount of board gaming I do), so I was a little skeptical when a friend of mine suggested playing online at boardgamearena.com.
I recently signed up online, and I’m already getting sucked into it. I know, I know, it’s not the same as playing with people in real life, but I can already see how fun it is. The website is free and it keeps track of all your gaming stats.
The user @theboardgeek started this hashtag #mytop9boardgames a few days ago on Instagram, and I decided to jump on it and create my own photo grid. I hadn’t actually thought to write down my list in a while. There are just so many games out there! And of course, as you get deeper into the hobby, your tastes and preferences change. If you check out the list, I totally love heavy, crunchy games.
Hi, folks! I’m back from being out of town and totally feel recharged. And guess what? I got some board gaming in during my time away.
So the beginning of this post actually starts about a month ago. I get a text message from some friends in Los Angeles, telling me that they’re at GameHaus Cafe and that they’re thinking of me. I actually visited this place about a year ago when I was in town; I didn’t get a chance to play as I was on my way to a wedding reception, but I did get a chance to take some photos and pose nerdily in front of the massive game library. Seriously folks, this place is amazing. You need to check it out!
Anyway, my friends aren’t board gamers at all, but they were invited by another friend who also wanted to check the place out. They were amazed by the sheer volume of board games out there they had never heard of, especially games in the back room where you need to drop off your ID. So they said next time I’m in town that I should bring some games when I visit their pad.
And that’s my cue to let the flood gates open into the world of board gaming …
Takenoko is an adorable panda game that gets a lot of play during my personal game nights.
My friends enjoy the cute theme, as well as the not-super-complex style of playing. It also doesn’t hurt that the rule book is this visually beautiful comic book that’s easy to follow and reference.
The game plays 2-4 players, and it takes about 45 minutes. And who doesn’t love the little panda and gardener figurines?