Day 14 D&D 40th Anniversary Blog Hop: Did you meet your significant other while playing D&D

Technically, I suppose my answer to this question should be "No". I did not meet my significant other while playing D&D. However, I did meet her because I played D&D. 

A few posts back, the topic was about the first store you bought your gaming supplies from. If you can remember the first time you walked into an actual game store, I'm sure you can recall how fantastic it was. (It was for me, anyway). Here was a place filled with games. Games you had never even heard of. Wargames! Roleplaying games! Dice! Miniatures! Painting supplies! The people in the store all shared your hobby. It was great. But my store held an additional attraction: The Girl Behind the Counter.

She was smart. She was funny. She was beautiful. And she played role playing games. I was instantly smitten. The only problem, I thought to myself, was that it was inconceivable that she wasn't already involved with someone.

Of course, I was right.  

And so, I waited. And shopped. For a long, long time.

While I waited, I got to know the individuals at the store. The employees, the regulars, even some of their children. I played games at the store. I ran games at the store. I brought my friends to the store. I bought a lot of product.  

During this time, The Girl Behind the Counter became the Assistant Manager and then the Manager of the store. We became friends. 

Then one day she was available, and for reasons I don't completely understand,  did not immediately shoot me down when I expressed my feelings for her.

We have been married for over 18 years at this point. We still game together once or twice a week with our friends. And I still don't completely understand how I lucked out.

Transitions: New Blog for the New Year

    This month's RPG Blog Carnival topic is Transitions. The idea is to post about what kind of changes you expect to be making in the upcoming year in regards to gaming. In my case, the biggest change will be this blog.
    I have been gaming for many years. I am lucky enough to have a stable, local group to game with that meets once or twice a week. This is a luxury that many people do not have, and I am grateful for it. 
    As the years have passed, however, I have found that I have grown more and more insular in my gaming interactions. When I was younger, I frequently met other people who gamed. I regularly visited my FLGS and occasionally played or ran games there. I attended gaming conventions (and helped run a few). I no longer do any of these things. I feel that this has dampened both my creativity and enthusiasm for the hobby.
    About a year ago, I started reading gaming blogs. (I knew they existed prior to this, but for some reason, I never actually read any of them.) Here was the larger gaming community I had been missing. This blog is the next logical step in joining it.
    So what can readers of this blog expect? One of the main things I intend to post about is the upcoming game I am about to start. Exploring Atlantis posts will be about campaign development and actual play in Khepera Publishing's Atlantis: The Second Age. I also intend to participate in the D&D 40th Anniversary Blog Hop Challenge (I just hope I can remember the answers to the questions after such a long time). In addition, I will also post ideas, scenarios, and opinions about various game related topics.
    I hope visitors to this blog will find it interesting and entertaining, and I thank you for stopping by.