...R.I.P. Mr Wizard Unlike many of my friends who have commented on the death of Don "Mr. Wizard" Herbert, I am old enough to have watched his first television show, way back in the late 1950's/early 1960's. The show had a profound effect on me and did more to encourage my interest in science than … Continue reading He Blinded Me With Science
Author: Doc Cross
I'm Doc. I live in Sacramento, California with my wife, Grace, and two dogs named Yoyo and Duke. I've been blogging for 22 years. I'm a TTRPG gamer, a gardener, dog lover, cook, and unrepentant scalawag. I write things that I think people might enjoy reading, especially if they are roleplayers or just strange. I hope you enjoy reading my stuff.
Monsters Of Peace And Love
...big radioactive monsters Weekend Report Saturday, we took the girls to the annual SPCA Doggie Dash at Land Park. While we did not actually participate in the actual run/walk, we did visit all of the many booths and interacted with hundreds of other dogs, including a few Bassets. Fun was had by all, but our … Continue reading Monsters Of Peace And Love
The Endearing, Yet Rather Twisted, Tale Of Mostly Purple Patty And The Giant Lemon Cake
...co-starring her pet shark, Hannibal Well, my little pork sausages, I wrote a fairly long post yesterday and then promptly did something to knock myself offline, thus losing it. So this post will not be as long or as varied, but ya takes what ya gets. Winker at the vets Our sweet little one eyed … Continue reading The Endearing, Yet Rather Twisted, Tale Of Mostly Purple Patty And The Giant Lemon Cake
It’s All Fun And Games Until Somebody Gets A D4 In The Eye
...and D8's are even worse It has been pointed out that I neglected to specify what breed/size of dog Lucky, Hawk Hawkins best friend, is. Well, Lucky is an All American Mutt. While there is definitely some terrier in his background, there are also indications of Basset or Beagle, Retriever, Border Collie and perhaps a … Continue reading It’s All Fun And Games Until Somebody Gets A D4 In The Eye
Harold Liked The Zoomy Girls
...and they liked Harold Pulp Character Creation Poll Our ace aviator, Captain Hawk Hawkins, owns one of the best known flying services in the Carribean. His base is located not far from Kingston, Jamaica and includes his home, three hangars and several workshops. Hawk shares his home with his best friend, his dog Lucky, and … Continue reading Harold Liked The Zoomy Girls
The Quiet Ducks Taste Best
...yum yum Short Movie Review: Pirates of the Carribean: At World's End This movie had the same basic problems as the third Spider-man film: too long, too many plot devices/characters, not a tight script. It was ok, since any movie with Johnny Depp and Geoffry Rush giving over the top performances is at least watchable … Continue reading The Quiet Ducks Taste Best
Cobras In The Water Closet
...not a pleasant surprise My sweet and playful canines woke me up at 6:00 this morning when they needed to go out to pee. I've been awake ever since. A bit of housecleaning (a very small bit) has been done. More will be done once we return from the 11:00 showing of Johnny Depp's latest … Continue reading Cobras In The Water Closet
Doc Tempest VS The Pleasure Droids
...from the April, 2009 issue Happy Birthday, Mom! Altho I know she'll never read this blog, I want to wish my mom a Happy 79th Birthday. She's a pretty exceptional gal. Also, I want to thank her for letting myself, my sister Rosie and my brother Kelly live to adulthood. Goodness knows that couldn't have … Continue reading Doc Tempest VS The Pleasure Droids
The Rat Brothers Paint A House
...with tiny little rat sized brushes Poll Results Altho voting was spread out all over the place, OTE Style High Weirdness won with 4 votes. Now, that doesn't mean I'll be running an OTE game, but it does help me focus my thoughts. As for the Pulp Character Poll, the winner was Ace Pilot and … Continue reading The Rat Brothers Paint A House
FooFoo, The Happy Marmot
...and his drunken little woodland pals Poll Results Wow...voting was all over the place on this one, but the winner is Ace Pilot. We'll start working on him/her tomorrow. Now, let's do another poll and help Uncle Doc figure out what game/games he wants to run at GenCon. And now I'm off to walk the … Continue reading FooFoo, The Happy Marmot
Frozen Vultures
...not on a stick GenCon News Due to tight money and fall classes starting early, Grace has decided to skip GenCon this year. It sucks, but she really does need the extra time and money to get ready for classes. So... ...I'll be at GenCon alone AND I could use a roommate. If you are … Continue reading Frozen Vultures
The Horticultural Whore Goes To War
...on weeds, mostly What I did on my Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day Weekend 1: Dried some herbs (tarragon, basil, mint & sage) from the garden by putting them in paper bags and leaving them inside the hot car for 2 days. 2: Took Daisy to the park for a long walk 3: Transplanted … Continue reading The Horticultural Whore Goes To War
3:15 In The Morning And The City Was Fogged In
...as San Francisco often is So, I guess today was the 30th anniversary of the premiere of Star Wars. No doubt geeks everywhere paused for a moment of reverential silence:) What gave me pause today was remembering that this summer is the 40th anniversary of the Summer of Love. Now, I was only 13 back … Continue reading 3:15 In The Morning And The City Was Fogged In
A Sweating, Twitchy, Semi-conscious Mass Of Post Orgasmic Femininity
...no comment A picture of the Winkerdog
Chasing An Alligator Up A Tree
...a peach tree Quick Stuff 1: Was gonna go to KublahCon this weekend, but since our GenCon fund is still a few hundred bucks short, I'll have to stay home. 2: Even as you read this, Alton Brown is wrapping up taping of a second 6 episodes of Feasting On Asphalt for an August 4 … Continue reading Chasing An Alligator Up A Tree
The Dangerous Arrangement With The Man From Paris
...fortunately, it ended well Just finished watching the season finale of Heroes and all I can say is...wow! A very satisfying ending, with a few comic book style loose ends left dangling, but nothing major. And that introduction to next season...Hot Damn! I can hardly wait for fall to arrive. Fairly tired tonight, so I'll … Continue reading The Dangerous Arrangement With The Man From Paris
All The Best Dogs Have Chinese Eyes
...both a Winker reference and a Pete Townsend reference Mini Review: Spider-Man 3 Too many villains...too long...good story, but knowing that Sony forced Sam Raimi to include the whole Venom storyline makes me want to see the movie that should have been...some very funny bits with J. Jonah Jamison...Flint Marko/Sandman was very well done...the Gwen … Continue reading All The Best Dogs Have Chinese Eyes
Goat Meat Taco
...mmmm, cabritos More Thoughts On Roleplaying Over on RPGNet, there is a post about what RPG's will be popular 20 years from now. As expected, D&D/CoC/Hero/WoD/Gurps top the lists, and I can see the logic of folks thinking that way. Personally, I think face to face tabletop RPGing will be an even tinier niche hobby … Continue reading Goat Meat Taco
Thunderboy And The Agents Of Madness
...time for a little boom boom Sssstuuuuuuuuuffffffff 1: Jerry Falwell died. Good! I'm sorry the motherfucker didn't suffer more. If he had never done anything worse than help get that fucking scumbag Reagan elected, he would still be deserved of a trip to Hell. 2: Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson are teaming up to do … Continue reading Thunderboy And The Agents Of Madness
The Startling Adventures Of Doctor Tempest And The Army Of The Dead
...from the June, 1897 issue Some Thoughts On Roleplaying Games As I was looking over my collection of computer games, it dawned on me that in most games, it is the sandbox mode that I play most frequently. Oh sure, the pre-made scenarios are fun and the main adventures in CRPG's like "The Elder Scrolls" … Continue reading The Startling Adventures Of Doctor Tempest And The Army Of The Dead
The Mystery Of The One Eyed Dog And Her Older Sister
...the mystery being how they can eat pig ears so damned fast ::Begin Mr. T Impersonation:: Hey, y'all! I pity the fool who doesn't go back a couple of posts and do the poll for Violet's skills! There'll be pain for all y'all who don't do as I say! ::End Mr. T Impersonation::
One Sad Kinkajou
...I don't know why he's sad Weekend Update Well, I didn't go see Spider-man 3 like I'd hoped. Saturday was Summer Curryfest 2007, with our friend Sharon visiting us for the first time since she moved up to northern Washington back in August. Throw in a bit of gardening (during which I seem to have … Continue reading One Sad Kinkajou
Groovy Golden Gophers
...cool, man Well, folks, here is the semi-final poll for our creation of Violet LaFlamme. I'll use the results of this poll to create the final poll. Note: We'll assume that, being a reporter, Violet has the Investigation, Research, Fast Talk, Interrogation, Pro Writer, Photography and Spot Clue skills. Now let's see what other skills … Continue reading Groovy Golden Gophers
The Wackily Funny, Yet Somewhat Disturbing, Story Of Mostly Purple Patty And The Trip To GenCon
...costarring her good buddy, Becky Turnipwater Health Updates Doc: Leg is 90% healed. Otherwise, in good shape. Grace: Tired from work & school, but healthy Daisy: Healthy, happy & energetic Winker: In heat, so not going to the dog parks. Otherwise, sweet and puppylike And before anyone asks, we can't have Winker fixed due to … Continue reading The Wackily Funny, Yet Somewhat Disturbing, Story Of Mostly Purple Patty And The Trip To GenCon
Pogundamaguna
...huh? Pulp Character Creation Poll Results Violet has some very good friends and trusted contacts who help her in her role as a crusading reporter. Number one among them is City Councilman Bill Wynoski, who keeps her informed about the goings on ay city hall. If anything smells of corruption, he gets word to Violet. … Continue reading Pogundamaguna
