Friends, thanks again to all of you who sent birthday wishes this past weekend. To continue my occasional autobiographical postings, I was born on 15 October 1968 in Roosevelt Hospital in Manhattan (I'm a Libra born in the Chinese astrological year of the monkey). My parents had immigrated to the U.S. after meeting in the Philippines. My mother worked as a nurse at Roosevelt and New York Hospital, and my father was then studying for his Ph.D. in medieval history at Adelphia University and the City University of New York Graduate Center.

I lived in Manhattan until about the age of 2, when we moved to the North Bronx, where my father taught at Lehman College-CUNY and my mother worked at the VA and then the Jewish Home & Hospital for the Aged in Kingsbridge Heights. Naturally, I don't remember much, if anything, from that early period, but childhood photos and growing up in the New York metropolitan area did make an impression. New York City had passed its golden age of the 1930s through the 1950s, but it will always be my first home. My brother Peter arrived in March 1973.

Much more recently, I wrote and filed two brief profiles of information technology executives for an upcoming CW issue. My father had his latest surgery to remove malignant tissue and is slowly recovering. My niece Ava has started to talk, and I'll be visiting my family in Virginia this coming weekend. Janice will be visiting her extended family in Pennsylvania early next month. Of course, events such as North Korea's testing of an atomic weapon, the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, and economic and environmental uncertainty at home aren't helping anybody's stress levels.

The Boston-area D&D3.5 "Vanished Lands: Halmed Desert" game, in a similar style to "The 1,001 Arabian Nights," is going well, and the role-play by e-mail is moving ahead with Byron V.O./"Ibrahim" in St. Louis and Greg D.C./"Janus" locally. David I.S. and Steve M.R. have continued to make halting steps to joining Dexter V.H. and me in the "City of Heroes" online game, which we're moving from Sunday mornings to Thursday evenings. We may eventually consider other multiplayer computer games.

Rather than repeat my list of genre television shows I'm watching this season, I'll focus here on just a few. Janice and I have been enjoying the second season/series of the BBC/SciFi Channel's revived "Doctor Who," especially the episode with former companions Sarah Jane and robotic dog K-9, as well as the sinister cameo by "Buffy: the Vampire Slayer's" Anthony Stuart Head. Interestingly, David Tennant was similarly puckish in the recent BBC/PBS "Casanova" miniseries. Tennant's style is somewhat lighter than that of predecessor Christopher Eccleston, but he's still a worthy bearer of the role of the Gallifreyan Time Lord known as the Doctor, IMHO…

Our other favorite program right now is "Avatar: the Last Airbender," an animated fantasy series now in its second or third year on Nickelodeon. Heavily influenced by Chinese mythology and anime (Japanese/Korean animation), "Avatar" features appealing but not flawless adventurers, clever plot twists, and an internally consistent world. More happens in a good half-hour episode of "Avatar" than in many other animated shows and even a few full-hour dramas!

Speaking of telegraphed dramas, I should mention my pleasure at finally seeing Oliver Queen/Green Arrow (played by Justin Hartley) in "Smallville." D.C. Comics' Emerald Archer has long been a favorite superhero of mine, partly because of this latter-day Robin Hood's social conscience (especially in the "Hard Traveling Heroes" storyline with Green Lantern in the 1970s). While I've collected many different comic book titles over the past 20+ years, Green Arrow is the one constant "must have" on my list, no matter where I've lived, from New York to Virginia to Massachusetts. So far, this season has turned out to be relatively strong for "Smallville," with less adolescent angst and kryptonite monsters of the week.

"Heroes" is the last show I'll mention for now. NBC's noncostumed metahumans have been well-introduced so far, with multiple plot threads gradually coming together, similar to the popular "Lost." Time will tell whether the would-be heroes learn to work together in time to stop catastrophe and are able to evade the attention of those who would use their powers selfishly and destructively (like almost everybody on the revisionist "Battlestar Galactica").

On Saturday, 14 October 2006, Janice and I helped out at a fund-raiser for the Pine Ridge Animal Center, the Dedham, Mass.-based branch of the Animal Rescue League of Boston. We mucked out some stables and ran the "dog kissing booth," where children could pay a few tickets to interact with two very gentle cocker spaniels and a miniature pit bull (American Staffordshire bull terrier) mix. The early autumn weather was surprisingly pleasant, especially in comparison with the two feet of snow dumped on Buffalo, N.Y., and I'm glad to finally have seen the shelter where Janice volunteers on most Sunday mornings.

Yesterday, we celebrated my birthday with lunch at "Fuji," our favorite local Japanese steakhouse. Janice gave me a gladius (Roman short sword) replica, for which I've been looking for many months. I also received birthday wishes and gifts from Damon F.P., Steve M., Ron J.K., and Steve M.R., as well as calls from my brother and parents. By Crom! In addition, Janice baked a chocolate cake. Now that my boss Michele L.D'F. is back from her Italian vacation, I hope this week will go smoothly before my next jaunt! Be well, -Gene

Friends, I hope you've had a good fortnight. On Saturday, 23 September 2006, Damon F.P. and Steve M., two friends of mine since high school, drove up to New England from metropolitan New York. Since Archbishop Stepinac H.S. didn't have a 20-year reunion (a 25th anniversary celebration for the class of 1986 is planned), we got together to reminisce on our own instead.

"Frater Po" and the "mountain man" made good time from Damon and family's new home in Lake Carmel, N.Y. (Steve lives in western Connecticut, making the "Westchester crew" label no longer valid.) The guys, Janice, and I took a commuter rail train from Needham Heights, Massachusetts, into downtown Boston. We had lunch at Quincy Market/Faneuil Hall's international food court, walked along the Freedom Trail past historic sites such as the Old North Church and Paul Revere's house, and had a snack in the North End, Boston's equivalent of Manhattan's Little Italy.

We also walked around the Boston Common (our Central Park) and stopped at the ''Bull & Finch" pub, the model for Sam Malone's bar in the popular "Cheers" television show, although we got cheaper drinks at another bar later. There was also a gathering of alternatively fueled vehicles by Government Center. Despite some clouds and passing showers, we were lucky with the weather, with temperatures in the mid-60s F. We paused a few times for Damon, whose endurance was poor due to some medication side effects, and we also passed through the theater district and the stores of Downtown Crossing before returning home.

Janice made her famous sloppy joes and chocolate chip cookies, which we all enjoyed. The next morning, while Janice volunteered for her weekly shift at a local animal shelter, Damon, Steve, and I walked into "downtown" Needham, although most of the shops were closed. Damon and Steve did get to see our pleasant residential neighborhood, and after another feast (roast chicken), they drove back southwest. I'll try to post the few pictures we took to my Yahoo photos page.

At work, ongoing technical challenges have forced longer workdays (some from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.) as regular end-of-week deadlines approach, and my boss Michele L.D'F. has been on vacation in Italy for two weeks. I've also been busy with various games and the start of the regular television season. I'll discuss them in more detail in other postings, but suffice to say for now that the D&D3.5 "Vanished Lands: Halmed Desert" fantasy campaign is now under way, including new role-player Otis D., who has come with some baggage from Dan A. and James B.'s group.

We left the D20 "Mutants & Masterminds" 2nd Ed.: "Drake's 7" summer scenarios with something of a cliffhanger, as the Player Characters obtained sanctuary with the X-Men from the Metahuman Registration Act (partly inspired by Marvel Comics' "Civil War" crossovers). David I.S. and Steve M.R. have finally taken the first steps to joining Dexter V.H. and me in the "City of Heroes" online multiplayer superhero game. While Carolyn M.P. has unfortunately ended her involvement in the play by e-mail group, Byron V.O., with Greg D.C.'s help, is exploring ways to teleconference into our face-to-face D&D3.5 sessions from St. Louis, Missouri.

"Veronica Mars" and "Smallville" have returned with decent episodes (no major plot revelations yet, but the repositioning of characters has been interesting), as did the SciFi Channel's revived "Doctor Who" and revisionist and increasingly dark-toned "Battlestar Galactica." Janice and I are still watching "Heroes," which has yet to fully set up or fall into the story arc traps used in "Babylon 5," "The X-Files," and "Lost." We're also watching various animated supehero shows, such as "Legion of Superheroes" (an O.K. successor to "Teen Titans") and "The Batman" (much improved with the addition of Robin).

On Saturday, Sept. 30, Janice and I met Thomas K.Y. and Cliff & Eliza Y. at the "Melting Pot," a new fondue restaurant in Framingham, Mass., and part of a national chain. We had four courses: a cheese course, salad, entree (meat), and chocolate/dessert. The food was very good and filling, but the high price (about $40 per person including drinks and tip) means we probably won't go there very often. It was also nice to catch up with Thomas, who dropped out of the gaming group for now after the shift from the D20 "M&M"2e: "Drake's 7" supehero scenarios to D&D3.5, and with Cliff & Eliza, who are expecting their first child!

Speaking of children, Janice's and my niece Ava has recovered from her latest ear infection, our niece Laura has been diagnosed with a pre-epileptic condition, and Janice will be visiting her extended family in Pennsylvania early November. Dexter hopes to come to Boston that weekend, and I'll probably host our annual Halloween costumed game then. I'll be visiting my family in Virginia after my father's latest surgery in two weeks. Janice and I plan to spend Thanksgiving with her immediate family in Upstate New York.

This past Saturday, Oct. 7, Janice and I took advantage of so-called Indian summer by going to the King Richard's Faire. It was the first time we had been to the Renaissance festival on Massachusetts' South Shore in two years. The fair food was tasty; the garbed attendees (including myself) and entertainers were, well, entertaining; and our favorite weapons and jewelry/artisan vendors were in their usual booths. We also saw the tiger and bird of prey exhibitions, the joust, and various carnival games (we were rusty with archery). My wardrobe of costumes and garb, plus my sword collection, continue to grow.

Yesterday, we caught up on chores such as mowing the lawn, vacuuming, and doing laundry; watched some football and reruns of "Star Trek: the Next Generation"; and caught up on reading magazines and newspapers. Janice also made chocolate chip pancakes! This coming weekend, I'll be helping Janice at a fund-raiser for the shelter where she volunteers on most Sundays. As you can see, there's always something going on!