Kotei Weekend! (Sioux City Edition)
May. 8th, 2011 10:23 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
daidoji_giseiSo this weekend I went up to South Sioux City for the Kotei tournament Bob Yager was running. This is my second Kotei of the season, as I went to Chicago in February--an occasion I really should get around to journaling, because Mike Colson is an excellent TO and a delightful host and I should leave myself notes to encourage me to go to his parties L5R tournaments more often.
Anyway, my weekend started poorly in the sense that I had picked up my car early Friday afternoon and got about four blocks down the street before getting into a car accident. A car ahead of me pulled into my lane while I was in it and this just never works well. Our cars had only minor damage and the cops gave the other driver the ticket, but it was still a very upsetting thing. (And now I have a police report to fill out and the rental car agency to deal with tomorrow. Oh, joy.)
I finally got out of town late afternoon and took 77 up to SSC. I like the 77 route in general, as I think it is more scenic, but this time it also had the advantage of not having to deal with the snarl that is I-80/480 through Omaha. Normally Omaha driving doesn't bother me, but normally I haven't just gotten into a car accident. After a couple of hours rolling through the Nebraska countryside and singing along with Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac at the top of my lungs I started to feel somewhat better about life.
Arriving at the hotel I almost immediately fell in with a group of L5R players who were going out for pizza at a place called Buffalo Alice. After two good beers, three slices of excellent pizza and some amusing dinner conversation I began to feel really, really good. (It is somewhat terrible to admit how great of a drug combination alcohol and roasted cheese is, but there you have it.)
Saturday was the tournament proper, and I helped Bob with the registration. In between paperwork tasks I chatted with Shawn Carman, my boss on the Story Team, and Troy Graham, L5R artist. Talking with Troy is entertaining because he is another longtime L5R player (much longer than I, in fact) and we get to talk about "kids these days". The tournament itself went smoothly (as Bob's tournaments usually do) and everyone seemed to have a good time. When it ended a large fraction of the attendees repaired to Bob's suite for the after-party. He had a good supply of alcohol and I had baked a lot of cake, so that also went well.
Sunday was a day for packing up, saying goodbye, and driving home. I had considered trying to do useful things, like laundry, this afternoon and evening but ended up just lying around trying to recoup my energy. Being social takes a lot out of me, though in the right crowd I do enjoy it. If my plans for ride-shares hold up, I will be able to go to the KC and St Louis Kotei--I'm looking forward to it, exhaustion and all.
Anyway, my weekend started poorly in the sense that I had picked up my car early Friday afternoon and got about four blocks down the street before getting into a car accident. A car ahead of me pulled into my lane while I was in it and this just never works well. Our cars had only minor damage and the cops gave the other driver the ticket, but it was still a very upsetting thing. (And now I have a police report to fill out and the rental car agency to deal with tomorrow. Oh, joy.)
I finally got out of town late afternoon and took 77 up to SSC. I like the 77 route in general, as I think it is more scenic, but this time it also had the advantage of not having to deal with the snarl that is I-80/480 through Omaha. Normally Omaha driving doesn't bother me, but normally I haven't just gotten into a car accident. After a couple of hours rolling through the Nebraska countryside and singing along with Tom Petty and Fleetwood Mac at the top of my lungs I started to feel somewhat better about life.
Arriving at the hotel I almost immediately fell in with a group of L5R players who were going out for pizza at a place called Buffalo Alice. After two good beers, three slices of excellent pizza and some amusing dinner conversation I began to feel really, really good. (It is somewhat terrible to admit how great of a drug combination alcohol and roasted cheese is, but there you have it.)
Saturday was the tournament proper, and I helped Bob with the registration. In between paperwork tasks I chatted with Shawn Carman, my boss on the Story Team, and Troy Graham, L5R artist. Talking with Troy is entertaining because he is another longtime L5R player (much longer than I, in fact) and we get to talk about "kids these days". The tournament itself went smoothly (as Bob's tournaments usually do) and everyone seemed to have a good time. When it ended a large fraction of the attendees repaired to Bob's suite for the after-party. He had a good supply of alcohol and I had baked a lot of cake, so that also went well.
Sunday was a day for packing up, saying goodbye, and driving home. I had considered trying to do useful things, like laundry, this afternoon and evening but ended up just lying around trying to recoup my energy. Being social takes a lot out of me, though in the right crowd I do enjoy it. If my plans for ride-shares hold up, I will be able to go to the KC and St Louis Kotei--I'm looking forward to it, exhaustion and all.
