Lately I’ve been thinking about the Twilight Zone episode “Time Enough at Last” where the character, Henry (played by Burgess Meredith), finally has the time to read all he wants as he is finally without interruptions (being the last man on Earth). Then he breaks his glasses….

 Labor Day weekend has traditionally been my weekend to play wargames at our premier SF Bay Area wargame convention, Pacificon. Cancelled this year because of COVID, of course. I’ve been attending this convention in its various forms since 1977. It’s the convention that made me include board wargaming into my gaming repertoire. 

I recently retired from a 34-year career teaching history. Normally, this would be a very  busy time of year for me, 50-60 hour work weeks not being uncommon. Pacificon was always my one break… Two days of solid gaming and spending time with other like-minded souls. (I didn’t have the time for more than that, but to paraphrase Geddy Lee: “two days are two days”.)

Much has been written about the solitary nature of our hobby and there seems to be an emphasis on games that play well solitaire. But the social aspect of gaming, the getting together with friends, pushing counters/blocks, having laughs….  That’s what keeps me going. 

So here’s to looking forward to next year’s convention. In the meantime, I’ve got all the time in the world to get to all those games I promised myself I’d learn how to play when I retired…  I hope.