A Pirate on the Prairie

Back in the early 1990s a female friend of mine hosted a murder mystery party at her home. As I recall, we all dressed for the occasion and spent the night playing the role of our assigned characters while trying to uncover who was the murderer in our midst. I don’t recall who it was, but I do remember having fun with the rest of the group in attendance. I also once took part in a murder mystery dinner party at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina when I was sti

Last year, Professor DM of the Dungeon Craft YouTube channel (@DUNGEONCRAFT1) devoted two videos to an examination of the most popular, best-attended games at last year’s Gen Con. I shared those videos in two posts to this blog, “The Most Popular Tabletop Roleplaying Games (TTRPGs) for 2025” (https://www.apirateontheprairie.com/post/the-most-popular-tabletop-roleplaying-games-ttrpgs-for-2025) and “The Most Popular Tabletop Roleplaying Games for 2025 (An Addendum)” (https://ww

I’m by no means a defensive tactics/personal defense expert. I have had a couple firearms classes, I have studied some self-defense/unarmed combat techniques, I hit the heavy bag occasionally for exercise and stress relief, and I wrestled in high school. But I have some thoughts that I am going to share following a rather humorous “accident” that befell me yesterday evening. Last night I was relaxing on the couch before I needed to start getting ready for work. I was lying do

I’m reminded of a girlfriend that once staged what amounted to an intervention on my behalf. Beautiful, touching, and bittersweet song. “Diamond Rio - You're Gone (Official Video)” https://youtu.be/0IJiVwE1y3c

I was introduced to Restless Heart when I was a teenager, but this particular song by the band took on personal meaning for me after I started dating a young woman shortly after turning twenty-one. “Restless Heart | I'll Still Be Loving You” https://youtu.be/Sjmj-dwJQAI

Me when I tell a girlfriend what I believe to be a funny story from my childhood and she responds by telling me how sorry she is that I had to live through that:

“Squeezin' out a thin dime 'til there's no one hanging on my arm. I've gambled on a third time. A fool will tell you it's a charm.” I am not a big gambler, but I have definitely squeezed “…out a thin dime ‘til there’s no one hanging on my arm.” And I have once “…gambled on a third time” and I am inclined to agree with the fool. “Clint Black - A Good Run Of Bad Luck (Official Video)” https://youtu.be/lexhv8MaXQ8

“Right there. Mary Ellen Moffat. She broke my heart.” — Richard Dreyfuss as Matt Hooper in Jaws “Mary Ellen Moffat. She broke my heart” (https://clip.cafe/jaws-1975/mary-ellen-moffat/) Below is a link to another short, interesting video from the Flourish with Laurin YouTube channel. This one touches on the hurt and the emotional “hangover” that follows in the wake of a romantic relationship coming to an end. I am by no means an authority on these matters aside from my own lim

“Somebody's Baby” https://youtu.be/LmTP0wLPK3g

The end of summer is approaching. Sometimes I still find myself wondering how I ended up living so far from the coast and I know my story. I certainly wasn’t Jeff Spicoli from Fast Times at Ridgemont High, but I too loved my time spent in, on, and around the ocean. Anyway, I hope that you enjoy this song and film clip. 😎 “I Don't Know (Spicoli's Theme)” https://youtu.be/V1dxjF1LR0U “Fast Times at Ridgemont High (4/10) Movie CLIP - I Don't Know (1982) HD” https://youtu.be/bc2

I recently shared a couple of videos from the RPG Elite YouTube channel on playing tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) as a solo participant in my post, “Some Solo Gaming Advice and Recommendations” (https://www.apirateontheprairie.com/post/some-solo-gaming-advice-and-recommendations). In one of those videos, Servant of Shiloh shares the announcement that Marvel is planning to release a new set of solo rules for the Marvel Multiverse Role-Playing Game. He shared a picture of

“Make A Little Magic” https://youtu.be/Ew-3H1xpmb4

“The Other Guy” https://youtu.be/rlc-Hh1Nz-Y

I love the fact that tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs) like Dungeons & Dragons or D&D can help players to grow as people and to teach important lessons and concepts to people. Playing these games can help players to discover more about themselves while helping them to better navigate and understand potential interactions with others. And much as wargames can help military professionals to learn how to fight and win a battle, a campaign, or a war, roleplaying games can help

In a number of posts on this blog, I have announced my intention to play tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). That includes my intention to play at least some of the time without a group as a solo participant. I recently came across a couple of videos on solo TTRPG play published by Servant of Shiloh of the RPG Elite (@RPGElite) YouTube channel. If you have checked out my blog before, you may have come across a previous post where I shared a link to a video by Servant. The po

“Vixen - Cryin'” https://youtu.be/cxGYHnTRMAw

“Vixen - Edge Of A Broken Heart” https://youtu.be/mQOmDUnt8Hs Rest in peace, Jan Kuehnemund. 😔

The good days, the great days, the okay days, the new experiences, sights, and destinations, the new loves and friendships, and the opportunity to reminisce about the things that I have seen and experienced are the rewards for having survived the dark days and dark nights and not completely capitulating in the face of despair, heartbreak, and sadness

“SAMANTHA SANG ~ "EMOTION" (with The Bee Gees) highest def. audio/video~ 1977” https://youtu.be/zPwpVJ-eIgg

I mean, c’mon. You had your reservations. 😏