A few months ago, I made an announcement on Facebook that I was going to read all of the Hugo and Nebula award-winning novels. These are the two highest honors that a Science Fiction novel can achieve, and the best of the best will sometimes win both in the same year. As of 2013, there are 62 Hugo winners and 49 Nebula winners. (The Hugo has been in existence longer and has a number of years where two novels tied.) When I started this project, I had read 16 Hugo and 13 Nebulas.
Since posting about it and putting together my checklist, I've read 5 novels, 3 double-winners, and 2 Hugo winners. There are still 8 double winners that I have yet to read, which can shorten the process a little. The biggest roadblock for me may be the number of tangents I go down while reading. For example, I read Dan Simmons's "Hyperion" and sucked into a tangent reading the four sequels. I'm also now interested in reading a few other Dan Simmons novels now.
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
State of the Region
It has been just over a year since I accepted the role of Regional Coordinator for the Northwest United States, and that makes it a decent point at which to take stock of things. When I first started as RC, I was in "survival mode," trying to simultaneously learn the ropes of being an RC and to learn the people and peculiarities of a region that I did not yet live in (I was in Virginia until June of this year). As my understanding of the region took shape, I identified several regional goals:
1) Develop new L3s. This year, the NW gained a new L3 in March, Jeremy Behunin from Odgen, Utah. This promotion was kind of a cheat because Utah itself was absorbed into the NW in January, something that I negotiated for when I accepted the role, partly because I wanted Jeremy in my region (both because he is an excellent judge, but also a close friend), but also for a longer term goal of mine which I will get to.
Before Jeremy, the last new L3 promotion in the NW was... Aaron Hamer, former RC, promoted to L3 in 2006. So the rest of the L3+ in the region are even older than that. There's nothing inherently wrong with that--their collective experience is a huge boon for their communities--but I believe that it is always better to mix new with old.
However, at the time that I took over, there were no prospects on the horizon. There were a few solid L2s who for one reason or another had not moved from "expert L2" to "L3 candidate." (There's no real line here, but it's more about perception combined with the judge personally deciding to make the jump, but you should definitely be an expert L2 before looking to make this switch.)
What a change a year makes. Looking ahead at 2014, I don't want to name names and place undue public pressure on people, so I will just say that I think we have 3 or 4 strong candidates for L3, and more interest buzzing in advancing. I will say that L3 is not for everyone, and if you're an L2, you shouldn't feel obligated to try to become an L3, nor should you ever feel shame that you are "only an L2." Especially at the regional level, L2s are the backbones of our communities. They do the lion's share of work at Competitive REL events, and serve as leaders of communities. But if you find yourself aspiring for more, or already doing work above and beyond, you should talk to me (or your RC if you are reading this from another region--Hi!) and explore your options.
2) Fill the gaps. At this time last year, Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska had zero L2s. Now Wyoming has 4 and Montana has 1. These are huge steps forward for these states in terms of being able to run more Competitive REL events without having to import judges, and more importantly, in their ability to certify new judges and become self-growing communities. Idaho, a state that started my term with 1 L2 judge (with 2 recently moving away), has also gained 2 new L2s and looks poised for several more. Alaska, you're next.
I've also tried to focus my efforts on developing the secondary cities in various states like Spokane, Washington and Eugene and Medford, Oregon. While the states of Washington and Oregon are doing well by pure numbers, they are severely imbalanced towards their Seattle and Portland metro centers.
3) Conquer and divide. When I first became RC of the "Northwest," I asked Andy Heckt and Cristiana Dionisio to give me the states of Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado (the first was in the Southwest and the latter two in the South). Why? Because I like games of territory conquest like Risk. Also, I wanted to consolidate these states and the current NW holdings of Idaho and Montana under one regional flag. Talking with Jeremy, he helped me see how these states had a lot more in common with each other than other parts of their region.
Ultimately, I would like to see the Mountain Region become its own entity, separate from the Pacific states. (I've waffled back and forth on which side of the divide Idaho should go on.) Right now, that isn't a viable option; mostly the numbers don't work out for a split... yet. However, we've seen some great growth in these states, and we're on the right track, which is why I'm sharing this idea more publicly now. I'd like the judges in the region to be involved in growing this idea and the region.
This isn't just a call to action for the Mountain States. I don't think that the Pacific States have reached enough saturation to be considered for their own separate regionship. The Judge Program has grown by leaps and bounds, but a lot of that has been big getting bigger, by which I mean that the metro centers have gotten a higher concentration of this growth. It's time to spread the butter with the knife.
1) Develop new L3s. This year, the NW gained a new L3 in March, Jeremy Behunin from Odgen, Utah. This promotion was kind of a cheat because Utah itself was absorbed into the NW in January, something that I negotiated for when I accepted the role, partly because I wanted Jeremy in my region (both because he is an excellent judge, but also a close friend), but also for a longer term goal of mine which I will get to.
Before Jeremy, the last new L3 promotion in the NW was... Aaron Hamer, former RC, promoted to L3 in 2006. So the rest of the L3+ in the region are even older than that. There's nothing inherently wrong with that--their collective experience is a huge boon for their communities--but I believe that it is always better to mix new with old.
However, at the time that I took over, there were no prospects on the horizon. There were a few solid L2s who for one reason or another had not moved from "expert L2" to "L3 candidate." (There's no real line here, but it's more about perception combined with the judge personally deciding to make the jump, but you should definitely be an expert L2 before looking to make this switch.)
What a change a year makes. Looking ahead at 2014, I don't want to name names and place undue public pressure on people, so I will just say that I think we have 3 or 4 strong candidates for L3, and more interest buzzing in advancing. I will say that L3 is not for everyone, and if you're an L2, you shouldn't feel obligated to try to become an L3, nor should you ever feel shame that you are "only an L2." Especially at the regional level, L2s are the backbones of our communities. They do the lion's share of work at Competitive REL events, and serve as leaders of communities. But if you find yourself aspiring for more, or already doing work above and beyond, you should talk to me (or your RC if you are reading this from another region--Hi!) and explore your options.
2) Fill the gaps. At this time last year, Wyoming, Montana, and Alaska had zero L2s. Now Wyoming has 4 and Montana has 1. These are huge steps forward for these states in terms of being able to run more Competitive REL events without having to import judges, and more importantly, in their ability to certify new judges and become self-growing communities. Idaho, a state that started my term with 1 L2 judge (with 2 recently moving away), has also gained 2 new L2s and looks poised for several more. Alaska, you're next.
I've also tried to focus my efforts on developing the secondary cities in various states like Spokane, Washington and Eugene and Medford, Oregon. While the states of Washington and Oregon are doing well by pure numbers, they are severely imbalanced towards their Seattle and Portland metro centers.
3) Conquer and divide. When I first became RC of the "Northwest," I asked Andy Heckt and Cristiana Dionisio to give me the states of Utah, Wyoming, and Colorado (the first was in the Southwest and the latter two in the South). Why? Because I like games of territory conquest like Risk. Also, I wanted to consolidate these states and the current NW holdings of Idaho and Montana under one regional flag. Talking with Jeremy, he helped me see how these states had a lot more in common with each other than other parts of their region.
Ultimately, I would like to see the Mountain Region become its own entity, separate from the Pacific states. (I've waffled back and forth on which side of the divide Idaho should go on.) Right now, that isn't a viable option; mostly the numbers don't work out for a split... yet. However, we've seen some great growth in these states, and we're on the right track, which is why I'm sharing this idea more publicly now. I'd like the judges in the region to be involved in growing this idea and the region.
This isn't just a call to action for the Mountain States. I don't think that the Pacific States have reached enough saturation to be considered for their own separate regionship. The Judge Program has grown by leaps and bounds, but a lot of that has been big getting bigger, by which I mean that the metro centers have gotten a higher concentration of this growth. It's time to spread the butter with the knife.
Friday, October 11, 2013
Running the Portland Marathon
Three hours, fifty-eight minutes, fifty-six seconds
3:58:56
That was my net time for the Portland Marathon (time from when the gun fired was 4:03:25). For 26.2 miles, that was 9 minutes, 7 seconds per miles. The results website also has a lot of other neat information. For example, I finished in 1759th place, ahead of 5054 other runners, so I was in the top 26%. Among men, I finished 1210, ahead of 2066, good for 37%. For men in my arbitrary age bracket (35-39), I was 224th, ahead of 296 for 43%.
So there you have it. I barely made my initial goal of running a marathon in under four hours, but didn't make my stretch goal of 3:45. For the first 17 miles, I was actually on a fantastic pace to make my stretch goal, but got a cramp at mile 17-18 that slowed me down. I had to pull off the side of the race and stretch out my calf, at which point the pace runner for 3:45 passed me. From that point on, I had to run at a much more conservative pace and take frequent breaks to stretch to ensure that I could even finish. Even then, I almost lost in completely at mile 25 as muscles seized up to the point where I honestly thought that I would have to retire from the race and get medical attention. The decision to keep going was not an easy one, and I'm paying the price today, a few days after the race, as I am pretty much walking around at snail speed.
Right after finishing, the overwhelming emotion I felt was relief that I had actually made it. I also heard Tasha cheering for me right before the finish line and really just wanted to see her, but there were several hundred feet of food stations after the finish line so I loaded up on chocolate milk, fruits, bread, whatever I could grab. Then I had to pick up my "Portland Marathon Finisher" T-shirt, take a finisher photo, and get some other free goodies like a medal and other nick nacks. It felt like another mile before I finally made it out of that area back to the public zone. Thankfully, that area was set up with specific letter ranges for "reunion areas" and I headed to the range for "H."
Tasha was there waiting (since it took me so long to hobble over), and when I found her I just fell into her arms and started crying. A weight, maybe the weight, finally lifted off of my shoulders and I felt like I could let my emotions out. The pain of those last few miles, of wanting to give up, being oh so close to giving up. Then it was the memories and emotions of the months leading up to this moment, the training and the preparing. It all hit me at once.
When I first scheduled this marathon, we noted that it was opposite GP Oklahoma City, a Legion event. Tasha and I both love working for the Ports and Legion, and she has even more personal investment because they were her "home PTO" back in Minnesota. She briefly thought about going to the GP while I ran the marathon, but I asked her to stay precisely for this reason. I wanted her there at the finish line (kind of) to hold me at the end. It reminds me of the scene at the end of Jerry Maguire. Part of his sappy speech is that the night wasn't complete because he couldn't share it Dorothy. In that moment, after running a marathon, a sad and lonely task, Tasha completed me.
Inevitably, people ask if I'll run another marathon. I've read on a few websites that it isn't a good idea to think about this until some time has elapsed since the race because there are so many complex emotions that go along with this decision. I'll let you know after my week is up.
3:58:56
That was my net time for the Portland Marathon (time from when the gun fired was 4:03:25). For 26.2 miles, that was 9 minutes, 7 seconds per miles. The results website also has a lot of other neat information. For example, I finished in 1759th place, ahead of 5054 other runners, so I was in the top 26%. Among men, I finished 1210, ahead of 2066, good for 37%. For men in my arbitrary age bracket (35-39), I was 224th, ahead of 296 for 43%.
So there you have it. I barely made my initial goal of running a marathon in under four hours, but didn't make my stretch goal of 3:45. For the first 17 miles, I was actually on a fantastic pace to make my stretch goal, but got a cramp at mile 17-18 that slowed me down. I had to pull off the side of the race and stretch out my calf, at which point the pace runner for 3:45 passed me. From that point on, I had to run at a much more conservative pace and take frequent breaks to stretch to ensure that I could even finish. Even then, I almost lost in completely at mile 25 as muscles seized up to the point where I honestly thought that I would have to retire from the race and get medical attention. The decision to keep going was not an easy one, and I'm paying the price today, a few days after the race, as I am pretty much walking around at snail speed.
Right after finishing, the overwhelming emotion I felt was relief that I had actually made it. I also heard Tasha cheering for me right before the finish line and really just wanted to see her, but there were several hundred feet of food stations after the finish line so I loaded up on chocolate milk, fruits, bread, whatever I could grab. Then I had to pick up my "Portland Marathon Finisher" T-shirt, take a finisher photo, and get some other free goodies like a medal and other nick nacks. It felt like another mile before I finally made it out of that area back to the public zone. Thankfully, that area was set up with specific letter ranges for "reunion areas" and I headed to the range for "H."
Tasha was there waiting (since it took me so long to hobble over), and when I found her I just fell into her arms and started crying. A weight, maybe the weight, finally lifted off of my shoulders and I felt like I could let my emotions out. The pain of those last few miles, of wanting to give up, being oh so close to giving up. Then it was the memories and emotions of the months leading up to this moment, the training and the preparing. It all hit me at once.
When I first scheduled this marathon, we noted that it was opposite GP Oklahoma City, a Legion event. Tasha and I both love working for the Ports and Legion, and she has even more personal investment because they were her "home PTO" back in Minnesota. She briefly thought about going to the GP while I ran the marathon, but I asked her to stay precisely for this reason. I wanted her there at the finish line (kind of) to hold me at the end. It reminds me of the scene at the end of Jerry Maguire. Part of his sappy speech is that the night wasn't complete because he couldn't share it Dorothy. In that moment, after running a marathon, a sad and lonely task, Tasha completed me.
Inevitably, people ask if I'll run another marathon. I've read on a few websites that it isn't a good idea to think about this until some time has elapsed since the race because there are so many complex emotions that go along with this decision. I'll let you know after my week is up.
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Picture This (You staffed for an event)
As Regional Coordinator, I've been on a bit of a profile photo kick lately, meaning encouraging judges to add profile photos to Judge Center and Judgeapps, and personally taking photos of people whenever possible (although it would help if I could remember to bring the extra shirts to all the events I go to). The reason is simple: I don't know you. Yes, yes. We worked together at that Grand Prix or SCG Open once. Maybe we were even on the same team. Here's the thing; I do a lot of these events, and I meet a lot of people. And while I wish I could remember every single person I've ever come into contact with at a Magic tournament, it just isn't in the cards because I work so many dang events.
And that's just me. It turns out there are other judges out there who have a hand in choosing staff for events. These are the other RCs around the globe, select Judge Managers for GP TOs, or maybe the good old folks at StarCityGames. These people help choose staff for events every week, and on average they probably get around a lot less than I do.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, some people put in a lot of effort into their event application cover letters, maybe even a thousand words worth of effort, to make sure that the people staffing the event have relevant information about their experience as a judge. Those types of cover letters are greatly appreciated, by the way. But then inevitably, some of these awesome cover letters are not accompanied by a profile photo, and I am left to scratch my head. I kind of recognize the name and I feel like I've worked with this person, but I don't remember.
Adding a profile photo to your account is a simple way to help people remember you. It can't take the place of a solid review or dinner with another judge, but every little bit helps, and it's a step that not enough judges are taking right now.
For Judge Center, photos need to be 300x300 pixels or smaller. I've fooled around with various programs and each one has fairly straightforward ways to edit a photo's size. If you don't yet have an official "Magic Judge" shirt, don't fret. Really any black button up shirt will do. You can crop it so that it is shoulders up, or just not worry about a little logo on your chest. It also helps if you smile. No one wants to staff that frowny face.
EDIT: and thanks to David de la Iglesia, fabled judge photographer, here is a link to information on how to add your profile photo to your Judgeapps account. I spy a Sam Straus profile photo.
http://blogs.magicjudges.org/judgeapps/your-profile-and-settings/profile-photos/
And that's just me. It turns out there are other judges out there who have a hand in choosing staff for events. These are the other RCs around the globe, select Judge Managers for GP TOs, or maybe the good old folks at StarCityGames. These people help choose staff for events every week, and on average they probably get around a lot less than I do.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, some people put in a lot of effort into their event application cover letters, maybe even a thousand words worth of effort, to make sure that the people staffing the event have relevant information about their experience as a judge. Those types of cover letters are greatly appreciated, by the way. But then inevitably, some of these awesome cover letters are not accompanied by a profile photo, and I am left to scratch my head. I kind of recognize the name and I feel like I've worked with this person, but I don't remember.
Adding a profile photo to your account is a simple way to help people remember you. It can't take the place of a solid review or dinner with another judge, but every little bit helps, and it's a step that not enough judges are taking right now.
For Judge Center, photos need to be 300x300 pixels or smaller. I've fooled around with various programs and each one has fairly straightforward ways to edit a photo's size. If you don't yet have an official "Magic Judge" shirt, don't fret. Really any black button up shirt will do. You can crop it so that it is shoulders up, or just not worry about a little logo on your chest. It also helps if you smile. No one wants to staff that frowny face.
EDIT: and thanks to David de la Iglesia, fabled judge photographer, here is a link to information on how to add your profile photo to your Judgeapps account. I spy a Sam Straus profile photo.
http://blogs.magicjudges.org/judgeapps/your-profile-and-settings/profile-photos/
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Montana Judge Conference
Going into this past weekend, the state of Montana had just 5 L1 judges listed in Judge Center. And despite what you might think of Montana, there are Magic players out there. I flew out to Head Judge a PTQ in May and we had almost 100 players turnout for it in Bozeman, MT. That's not bad at all, and it is the kind of attendance where the area needs to have several L2s so that they can run Competitive REL events without importing the entire staff (for this PTQ, we also had two L2s, Ashton Chapman and Scott Neiwert come in from out-of-state).
At that PTQ, I tested one local, Jonathon Mortenson for L2, but unfortunately he did not pass. Other than that, I spoke to a bunch of people about judging but no one seemed particularly ready to take the L1 exam. Speaking with Ashton and Sara Erickson (one of the owners [along with her husband Lincoln] of the store that held the PTQ, Rook's Comics and Games), we agreed that the area needed a shot in the arm, something to drive up interest in judging and serve as a rallying point. It seemed like an ideal place to run a Judge Conference.
Having just planned and run a conference after GP Portland, I was burnt out on Super Mega Conferences attached to GPs and SCG Invitationals. While they certainly bring some value to an area, these have tended to be in population centers where judges aren't lacking in learning opportunities. Plus, organizing seminars for 100+ people is a huge amount of work, and one where I feel like there are rapidly diminishing returns in terms of real education, especially for the GP grinders who get to four or five of these per year. It's gotten to the point where I don't even want to attend these Super Conferences. (See: previous blog about social anxiety.)
Given the positive relationship I had with Rook's, and its geographic centrality--being in the middle of nowhere means that everyone from the edges of nowhere can get there--Bozeman seemed like the ideal place to hold this. Sara and Lincoln also scheduled an SCG Super IQ for the weekend to draw in more judges and players from the area, and I reached out to my local Coordinators to see who could make it. Luckily, we found a weekend where we were only missing one of them from the Rocky Mountains. We also got an expected surprise when Jess Dunks applied. Jess is from San Jose, but it turns out that his family is in Great Falls, Montana just a few hours away.
As we started the weekend's festivities with the Super IQ, I posted on Facebook, asking for guesses as to how many judges we would end up with. Most guesses ranged from 7 to 10, and two very optimistic people guessed 15. (LSV guessed that we would lose a judge and end up at 4. Always the jokester, that LSV.)
In terms of results, it is hard to argue with what we achieved. All in all, 11 people passed their L1 exam all of them from Montana. That's right. We ended the weekend with 16 total judges in Montana. We also got Montana's very first L2 judge, Jonathon Mortenson, who smashed his retry. Two other judges tested and passed for L2, Jonathan Gildersleeve and Lee Fisher from neighboring Idaho. As pure numbers, it was a decent weekend. As a percentage of attendees, it was an amazing weekend. For a state that started the weekend with 5 judges, this was earth-shattering.
We had one more advancement, or official recognition of sorts. For a few months now, I've had a group of State and Metro Coordinators operating together. Montana was the sole exception. It was under the watchful eye of Ashton from Idaho. With the sudden growth in Montana, it seemed right to name a new State Coordinator, and only one person made any kind of sense here: Sara Erickson. Her enthusiasm, drive, and love for her community were what made this weekend happen in the first place. I just got to use my position as RC to make it an official conference with foils and such.
I am already hearing about some friendly competition between Montana and Wyoming to see who can get more judges. I am quite familiar with these types of "judge drives," having master minded California's victory over the sovereign nation of Spain. What I love is that Wyoming SC Nole Clauson already has the right idea with contests like this. "My goal is to find people who are already doing the work as judges in their local stores and make it official by giving them the test." Right on, Nole. Advancing people just for the sake of numbers has never been a winning formula because those people often just lapse quickly, or they do a very poor job as judges. Maybe this is even a thing that Idaho can get involved in. (According to Judge Center, Idaho has 12 judges and Wyoming has 9. First to 25?)
Overall, a lot of people said a lot of nice things and thanked me for running this conference, but here are the superstars that really made it happen. My role was to have an idea, get people excited about the idea, put them in places to succeed, and let them do great work.
Presenters: Tasha Jamison ("So you want to be an L2" and "3-2-1 Combat"), Scott Neiwert ("So you want to be an L1"), Ashton Chapman ("Your Judge Community"), Nole Clauson ("Your Judge Community"), Jess Dunks ("Layers"), Adena Chernosky ("Training your local players"), Cassidy Meczak ("3-2-1 Combat"), Jeremy Behunin ("Handling Abilities"), and Bryan Spellman ("Judge Jeopardy") [I also presented on "Handling Illegal Actions."]
MC: Ashton Chapman who kept us running right on time.
Testing Coordinators: Tasha Jamison, Scott Neiwert. That was a lot of advancements. They pretty much enlisted every L2 we had to do exam debriefs.
Super IQ Judges: Jeremy Behunin, Tasha Jamison, Nole Clauson, Jonathon Mortenson, Goeff Dearing. It was a great event and I hope we can see more like it in Montana.
At that PTQ, I tested one local, Jonathon Mortenson for L2, but unfortunately he did not pass. Other than that, I spoke to a bunch of people about judging but no one seemed particularly ready to take the L1 exam. Speaking with Ashton and Sara Erickson (one of the owners [along with her husband Lincoln] of the store that held the PTQ, Rook's Comics and Games), we agreed that the area needed a shot in the arm, something to drive up interest in judging and serve as a rallying point. It seemed like an ideal place to run a Judge Conference.
Having just planned and run a conference after GP Portland, I was burnt out on Super Mega Conferences attached to GPs and SCG Invitationals. While they certainly bring some value to an area, these have tended to be in population centers where judges aren't lacking in learning opportunities. Plus, organizing seminars for 100+ people is a huge amount of work, and one where I feel like there are rapidly diminishing returns in terms of real education, especially for the GP grinders who get to four or five of these per year. It's gotten to the point where I don't even want to attend these Super Conferences. (See: previous blog about social anxiety.)
Given the positive relationship I had with Rook's, and its geographic centrality--being in the middle of nowhere means that everyone from the edges of nowhere can get there--Bozeman seemed like the ideal place to hold this. Sara and Lincoln also scheduled an SCG Super IQ for the weekend to draw in more judges and players from the area, and I reached out to my local Coordinators to see who could make it. Luckily, we found a weekend where we were only missing one of them from the Rocky Mountains. We also got an expected surprise when Jess Dunks applied. Jess is from San Jose, but it turns out that his family is in Great Falls, Montana just a few hours away.
As we started the weekend's festivities with the Super IQ, I posted on Facebook, asking for guesses as to how many judges we would end up with. Most guesses ranged from 7 to 10, and two very optimistic people guessed 15. (LSV guessed that we would lose a judge and end up at 4. Always the jokester, that LSV.)
In terms of results, it is hard to argue with what we achieved. All in all, 11 people passed their L1 exam all of them from Montana. That's right. We ended the weekend with 16 total judges in Montana. We also got Montana's very first L2 judge, Jonathon Mortenson, who smashed his retry. Two other judges tested and passed for L2, Jonathan Gildersleeve and Lee Fisher from neighboring Idaho. As pure numbers, it was a decent weekend. As a percentage of attendees, it was an amazing weekend. For a state that started the weekend with 5 judges, this was earth-shattering.
We had one more advancement, or official recognition of sorts. For a few months now, I've had a group of State and Metro Coordinators operating together. Montana was the sole exception. It was under the watchful eye of Ashton from Idaho. With the sudden growth in Montana, it seemed right to name a new State Coordinator, and only one person made any kind of sense here: Sara Erickson. Her enthusiasm, drive, and love for her community were what made this weekend happen in the first place. I just got to use my position as RC to make it an official conference with foils and such.
I am already hearing about some friendly competition between Montana and Wyoming to see who can get more judges. I am quite familiar with these types of "judge drives," having master minded California's victory over the sovereign nation of Spain. What I love is that Wyoming SC Nole Clauson already has the right idea with contests like this. "My goal is to find people who are already doing the work as judges in their local stores and make it official by giving them the test." Right on, Nole. Advancing people just for the sake of numbers has never been a winning formula because those people often just lapse quickly, or they do a very poor job as judges. Maybe this is even a thing that Idaho can get involved in. (According to Judge Center, Idaho has 12 judges and Wyoming has 9. First to 25?)
Overall, a lot of people said a lot of nice things and thanked me for running this conference, but here are the superstars that really made it happen. My role was to have an idea, get people excited about the idea, put them in places to succeed, and let them do great work.
Presenters: Tasha Jamison ("So you want to be an L2" and "3-2-1 Combat"), Scott Neiwert ("So you want to be an L1"), Ashton Chapman ("Your Judge Community"), Nole Clauson ("Your Judge Community"), Jess Dunks ("Layers"), Adena Chernosky ("Training your local players"), Cassidy Meczak ("3-2-1 Combat"), Jeremy Behunin ("Handling Abilities"), and Bryan Spellman ("Judge Jeopardy") [I also presented on "Handling Illegal Actions."]
MC: Ashton Chapman who kept us running right on time.
Testing Coordinators: Tasha Jamison, Scott Neiwert. That was a lot of advancements. They pretty much enlisted every L2 we had to do exam debriefs.
Super IQ Judges: Jeremy Behunin, Tasha Jamison, Nole Clauson, Jonathon Mortenson, Goeff Dearing. It was a great event and I hope we can see more like it in Montana.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
You, Me, and SeaCat Makes... Four
To say I've seen it all with SeaCat (Sean Catanese) is not too far off, at least when it comes to his Magic judge career. I didn't personally test him for Level 1, but that was because I only just tested for Level 2 that same day, both under Toby Elliott. We spent a lot of time together over the next two years, plotting and pushing each other to greatness.
While I jet-set around the world and sped my way to L3, SeaCat was the one who kept the home fires burning. He worked diligently to build the grass roots base of judges in the Sacramento area. I knew that he was the one who I wanted to test for L2 first, and in my haste, I screwed things up. I gave him the test before he was ready, twice, and I bore as much responsibility for those failed exams as Sean. Those exams taught me a very valuable lesson about letting knowledge be the driving force behind whether I should test someone, not passion because in the latter, Sean was never lacking. I am grateful that Sean stuck it out with me. I grew up a lot during that period, and third time was the charm. As a tribute to our own double advancement earlier, Sean turned right around and tested Jose Boveda for L1 that day. The three of us podcasted together, turning Judgecast into a household name.
When I needed a driving companion to make the five-hour trip to LA tolerable, Sean was there, and together we helped forge stronger bonds between Northern and Southern California. The state feels a lot smaller these days, but back then, there was almost zero contact between the sides. The best fruits of the North-South outreach, David Zimet. We'll get to him later.
One of the lessons that I have always tried to put to practice has been "train your replacement." When I left California to work for SCG in Virginia, I felt that I had succeeded in that. Sean look on more and more of the leadership in the state, and one year later he advanced to L3 at PT Philadelphia 2011. I wasn't on staff for that event, but as soon as I heard that Sean had passed the written exam (the part that I felt would give him the most trouble; the interview panel would be a cakewalk), I jumped on the next flight to Philly so that I could be there in person to congratulate him. Shortly after that, he was named the Regional Coordinator of the Southeast United States, again no surprise given the work he was doing.
Last year, I joined him among the ranks of RCs, taking the reigns of the Northwest region in anticipation of my move to Portland. I've taken a lot of how I handle being an RC from my talks with Sean. As Darth Vader said, "The student has become the master." Well, the master just ascended again, this time to Level 4 at GP Oakland, a fitting tribute given that he now calls the city of Oaks home. My biggest regret is that I couldn't be there to congratulate him in person again. I was in Baltimore instead, Scorekeeping the SCG Open there. Had I known that he would be promoted, I would have dropped everything and flown out to Oakland, just as I had in Philly. But L4 promotions are kept very tightly kept secrets. And I suppose it is fitting that I wasn't there. Several people asked me if I was proud of Sean's promotion. Of course, I am extremely proud of everything he accomplishes. He's one of my closest friends. But I detect that people are asking me if I am proud like a father is of his son, as if I still lord over Sean, and his accomplishments should somehow validate me. I haven't felt that way in years. He's done so much without me. I am proud to stand by him as his friend. I will be proud to stand at his side when he HJs his first GP. That one I won't miss under any circumstances. Better tell me when for that one.
While I jet-set around the world and sped my way to L3, SeaCat was the one who kept the home fires burning. He worked diligently to build the grass roots base of judges in the Sacramento area. I knew that he was the one who I wanted to test for L2 first, and in my haste, I screwed things up. I gave him the test before he was ready, twice, and I bore as much responsibility for those failed exams as Sean. Those exams taught me a very valuable lesson about letting knowledge be the driving force behind whether I should test someone, not passion because in the latter, Sean was never lacking. I am grateful that Sean stuck it out with me. I grew up a lot during that period, and third time was the charm. As a tribute to our own double advancement earlier, Sean turned right around and tested Jose Boveda for L1 that day. The three of us podcasted together, turning Judgecast into a household name.
When I needed a driving companion to make the five-hour trip to LA tolerable, Sean was there, and together we helped forge stronger bonds between Northern and Southern California. The state feels a lot smaller these days, but back then, there was almost zero contact between the sides. The best fruits of the North-South outreach, David Zimet. We'll get to him later.
One of the lessons that I have always tried to put to practice has been "train your replacement." When I left California to work for SCG in Virginia, I felt that I had succeeded in that. Sean look on more and more of the leadership in the state, and one year later he advanced to L3 at PT Philadelphia 2011. I wasn't on staff for that event, but as soon as I heard that Sean had passed the written exam (the part that I felt would give him the most trouble; the interview panel would be a cakewalk), I jumped on the next flight to Philly so that I could be there in person to congratulate him. Shortly after that, he was named the Regional Coordinator of the Southeast United States, again no surprise given the work he was doing.
Last year, I joined him among the ranks of RCs, taking the reigns of the Northwest region in anticipation of my move to Portland. I've taken a lot of how I handle being an RC from my talks with Sean. As Darth Vader said, "The student has become the master." Well, the master just ascended again, this time to Level 4 at GP Oakland, a fitting tribute given that he now calls the city of Oaks home. My biggest regret is that I couldn't be there to congratulate him in person again. I was in Baltimore instead, Scorekeeping the SCG Open there. Had I known that he would be promoted, I would have dropped everything and flown out to Oakland, just as I had in Philly. But L4 promotions are kept very tightly kept secrets. And I suppose it is fitting that I wasn't there. Several people asked me if I was proud of Sean's promotion. Of course, I am extremely proud of everything he accomplishes. He's one of my closest friends. But I detect that people are asking me if I am proud like a father is of his son, as if I still lord over Sean, and his accomplishments should somehow validate me. I haven't felt that way in years. He's done so much without me. I am proud to stand by him as his friend. I will be proud to stand at his side when he HJs his first GP. That one I won't miss under any circumstances. Better tell me when for that one.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
My Anxiety
This is something that I've been wanting to write for awhile now, but could never muster up the courage to. You see, I have a problem. This isn't one of those joke problems like "what am I going to do with all of these frequent flier miles?" This is a very real problem that affects my day to day life and sometimes affects my ability to be a good judge.
I suffer from social anxiety.
More specifically, I develop anxiety in larges masses of people, like World-War-Z-crush-of-zombies sized masses, and the associated noise. If this seems odd for someone who spends a majority of his weekends at airports and large Magic tournaments, let me explain. Those two places have a degree of order to them, and in particular it is a degree of order that I have conquered.
Let's take airports. I have 1K status with United, which is the highest status you can earn. This gives me access to the cheater lines at check-in, security, and boarding. Especially with United going to a clearly demarcated five-tier boarding system, I rarely have to wade through the masses anymore. During layovers, I beeline to the United Club, where I can hide out from crush of bodies. It's a nice quiet place to read e-mails and have a beer. About five minutes before boarding is scheduled to start, I make my way to the gate and try to time my arrival so that I can get right on the plane.
At Magic events, I am in charge, oftentimes literally as the Head Judge or Event Show Lead. When I get up in front of 600 people and make a pun like "We would hate for your Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale to become a Tabernacle of Ginger Ale" I don't feel nervous just because all eyes are on me. I actually like it because of the quiet and sense of order. Similarly, the mass of bodies when pairings are posted does not bother me. I know exactly where all those players are going and what they are doing. Even when I am wading through those players with the pairings in my hand, I am in control; a loud "judge coming through with pairings" will part the players.
Order and control. These things keep my anxiety down. In contrast, I suffer very bad anxiety attacks in Japan's subway system. There are way too many people crammed into way to small a space for my comfort. And unlike players at the pairings board, they don't move out of the way just because I tell them to. When a train stops, there are two streams of people fighting against each other, and despite what you might think about the polite demure Japanese stereotype, things can get brutal.
Yesterday, I suffered a pretty bad attack at a soccer match. Well, not even at the match. Outside the stadium on the way to the match. My anxiety level was building for a while leading up to the stadium as we saw more and more soccer fans--rowdy soccer fans. When the stadium came into sight, I lost it. I could feel the crush of people in my future. I could hear the chanting in my head. I stopped dead in my tracks and could not move another step forward. Tasha had to lead me away from the stadium back to the car and we went home.
I suffer from social anxiety.
More specifically, I develop anxiety in larges masses of people, like World-War-Z-crush-of-zombies sized masses, and the associated noise. If this seems odd for someone who spends a majority of his weekends at airports and large Magic tournaments, let me explain. Those two places have a degree of order to them, and in particular it is a degree of order that I have conquered.
Let's take airports. I have 1K status with United, which is the highest status you can earn. This gives me access to the cheater lines at check-in, security, and boarding. Especially with United going to a clearly demarcated five-tier boarding system, I rarely have to wade through the masses anymore. During layovers, I beeline to the United Club, where I can hide out from crush of bodies. It's a nice quiet place to read e-mails and have a beer. About five minutes before boarding is scheduled to start, I make my way to the gate and try to time my arrival so that I can get right on the plane.
At Magic events, I am in charge, oftentimes literally as the Head Judge or Event Show Lead. When I get up in front of 600 people and make a pun like "We would hate for your Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale to become a Tabernacle of Ginger Ale" I don't feel nervous just because all eyes are on me. I actually like it because of the quiet and sense of order. Similarly, the mass of bodies when pairings are posted does not bother me. I know exactly where all those players are going and what they are doing. Even when I am wading through those players with the pairings in my hand, I am in control; a loud "judge coming through with pairings" will part the players.
Order and control. These things keep my anxiety down. In contrast, I suffer very bad anxiety attacks in Japan's subway system. There are way too many people crammed into way to small a space for my comfort. And unlike players at the pairings board, they don't move out of the way just because I tell them to. When a train stops, there are two streams of people fighting against each other, and despite what you might think about the polite demure Japanese stereotype, things can get brutal.
Yesterday, I suffered a pretty bad attack at a soccer match. Well, not even at the match. Outside the stadium on the way to the match. My anxiety level was building for a while leading up to the stadium as we saw more and more soccer fans--rowdy soccer fans. When the stadium came into sight, I lost it. I could feel the crush of people in my future. I could hear the chanting in my head. I stopped dead in my tracks and could not move another step forward. Tasha had to lead me away from the stadium back to the car and we went home.
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