Friends, I hope you had a good Thanksgiving weekend. After a compressed workweek, Janice and I drove to Upstate New York to visit her immediate family. We ate the big holiday meal at Janice's parents' house near Lake George. The entire family took advantage of the unseasonably warm weather to go walking in the woods Thursday afternoon, although the various lap dogs and cockatiels stayed home. We also played pool in Marvin & Linda's basement. I've posted some family photographs at Yahoo.

I telephoned my parents and later heard from my brother Peter, Damon F.P., and James B. Early last week, I checked in on Eliza Y., who has been confined to bed rest late in her pregnancy, while her husband Cliff Y. was out of town on business. Ron J.K. had e-mailed holiday wishes and visited his brother in Brookline, while Mark A.S. & Ann W. sent an early card from New Zealand. I also spoke with former "Dragonslayer" Robert A.S. in Sharon, Massachusetts, for the first time in months.

On "Black Friday," Janice, her two younger sisters Michelle and Melinda, and their mother awoke at 3:30 a.m. to get a jump on Christmas shopping! I later met my brothers in law Gary T.L. and Melvin W. and took my nieces Becky, Laura, and Amanda and nephews David and Joshua to see "Happy Feet." The computer-animated musical comedy was decent.

That night, we ate tasty leftovers and watched "Ice Age 2: the Meltdown" on DVD at Gary & Melinda's. Both "Happy Feet" and "Ice Age 2" were amusing, although I liked Aardman's recent "Flushed Away" more. While we've been concerned about various family members' health, I hope everyone had a pleasant holiday. On Saturday, Janice and I drove from our motel to her parents for lunch before heading back to New England.

We caught up on newspapers, including the Boston Globe, the Boston Phoenix, the Cambridge Tab/Dig, the Improper Bostonian, and Stuff at Night, as well as two free Needham weeklies. I also regularly read the top stories of the New York Times, New York Newsday, and the Washington Post through the RSS feed on my Yahoo home page.

The Globe is best for overall local coverage, although I like the alternative (read: left-wing political and cultural) viewpoints of the Phoenix and Tab/Dig. The Improper Bostonian and Stuff at Night are useful for local events, although the glossy nightclub photographs and advertisements are pitched at younger and wealthier readers than me. Reuters is another news source that I used when I was a wire reporter/editor at BNA and again now at CW.

Since most genre television was in reruns, Janice and I watched other things, including an old Ray Harryhausen-animated Sinbad movie, some nature programs on PBS and Animal Planet, the music video channels, and various cooking shows. We do watch a bit of Home & Garden TV, the Discovery Channel (such as "Mythbusters"), and of course, the Food Network.

My favorite celebrity chefs are Wellesley's Ming Tsai, goofy scientist Alton Brown, and Italian "Iron Chef" Mario Battali. I get a fair amount of grief from co-workers about liking the attractive Giada De Laurentiis, the casual Rachael Ray, and the boisterous Emeril Lagasse. Other than "Iron Chef America," however, I'm not a big fan of all the competitive reality shows, including those involving inedible sugary skyscrapers. I prefer simple but filling and good-tasting cuisine.

On Sunday, 26 November 2006, I joined Kim M.E.A.G./"Lady Bewilder" and Dexter V.H./"Lady Faelonia" online as "Nightfall IIb" for "City of Heroes." Our costumed metahumans leveled up after clearing out more warehouses of mutant criminals. I hope that David I.S./"the Excoriator" and Steve M.R./"the Blazing Corona" will rejoin us in coming Thursday nights or Sunday mornings.

The recent release of videogames involving the X-Men, Avengers, and the Justice League are tempting me to buy a console such as Microsoft's Xbox 360, Sony's PlayStation 2, or Nintendo's Wii, but I have neither the time nor the money right now. In addition, I doubt I could get my friends and family to agree on one system. Simpler PC games such as "City of Heroes," "Lego Star Wars II," and maybe "Neverwinter Nights 2" are more than enough for now.

In the meantime, I've got to prepare for the regular Tuesday night face-to-face D&D3.5 "Vanished Lands: Halmed Desert" heroic fantasy sessions and this coming weekend's one-shots for Byron V.O./"Ibrahim" (and maybe Dex). The higher-level party is looking forward to taking on an undead dragon in her castle lair, and I'll be running the latest edition of the classic "Ravenloft" module! We're still having difficulty setting up videoconferencing between Byron's new home in St. Louis and the Boston area.

Plus, Janice's birthday is next Tuesday, and I've got holiday shopping to finish! While Janice went to the malls around Albany, New York, I expect to complete shopping for my family online, mainly on Amazon.com. BTW, the photo attached to this posting is from the Super MegaFest–see my previous blog entry. In addition, a co-worker just invited me to her holiday party, and similarly overworked David I.S. may be visiting the Boston area at the end of December. Take it easy, -Gene

Friends, as you can guess, I've been too busy lately to update my blog. So let's catch up. The weekend after my birthday (21 to 23 October 2006), I flew down to Virginia to visit my family. It wasn't really a social call, since my father is recuperating slowly and painfully from his latest surgery. My younger brother Peter and I tried to help our parents around their house in the Blue Ridge Mountains, trimming a persimmon tree and sorting through boxes of our childhood toys.

Still, it was nice to see my folks, enjoy my mother's cooking, and play with my niece Ava, who has started to walk and talk. She is the best medicine for my father. I stayed one night with Peter, Kelly, and Ava in Northern Virginia so as not to exhaust our parents.

In Alexandria, I caught the decent cyberpunk movie "The Island" on cable television, played an "X-Men" videogame with Peter, and hung out with Steve M.R., whose grandmother had unfortunately recently passed away. I also briefly saw Aleece Z.R. and Connor B.R., but Corbin A.Y. & Andria K.Y. were on the road (congrats to Dave & Amy R-B. on Noah R.!). In addition, Peter and I ate at "Chipotle," Janice's and my favorite fast-food burrito restaurant in the area, before returning to Boston.

Like many of my peers, I've been dealing with later hours at work, often not getting home until close to 7:00 p.m. I also recently submitted my latest brief profiles of information technology executives for an upcoming print issue. CW's long technical migration is finally bearing fruit, and our copy desk attended a gathering of editors at sister publications. Although I can't compare my workload to those in medical or legal professions, it does make weekend time more precious.

The following weekend, Janice and I stayed in and caught up on videotapes and reading on a rainy Saturday and went shopping on that Sunday. We've also had to rake leaves this autumn, whereas in previous apartments, we could rely on the wind or street cleaners to take them away.

Of current genre television, my favorite shows so far this season are the heroic and emotional "Avatar: the Last Airbender," "Heroes," and "Doctor Who." The "Ultimate Avengers 2" and "Hellboy: Sword of Storms" animated telemovies were also decent adaptations of their respective comic books, IMHO.

The D&D3.5 "Vanished Lands: Halmed Desert" role-playing group is also going well so far. Prospective gamer Otis D./"Ali-Jubal" hasn't attended in a few weeks and may have dropped out, but Beruk A./"Kunal," Greg D.C./"Killian," Brian W./"Mumtaz," and James B./"Ib" have been patiently working together in their initial "1,001 Arabian Nights"-style adventures. See my Yahoo/eGroups Web site (http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/DnD3VanishedLands/) for more details.

Byron V.O./"Ibrahim" hopes to participate by teleconference, and Greg has been keeping me busy on the role-play by e-mail side as "Janus." The face-to-face group could use one or two new people (especially reliable local and female gamers), but we're not in a big rush to recruit right now.

On a related note, college chum Dexter V.H. visited from Brooklyn, New York, this past weekend (4 to 5 November 2006). Janice visited her extended family in Pennsylvania and Steve M. in Connecticut. We hung out, ate out at local Greek and Jewish restaurants, and got dressed up for my annual Halloween costumed gathering! Dexter borrowed my Jedi knight garb, and I wore the Batman costume that I had intended to wear last year before surgery prevented that.

Although we didn't get many young trick or treaters, the postholiday party was a success (it would be more fun if it were before or during Halloween; see my photographs at Yahoo). Beruk/"the Stranger" was disguised as a catburglar, Brian came as geeky Southern gentleman "C.J.," and Paul J. wore a wreath of leaves as "Captain Oblivious." Latecomer James B./"Nick" borrowed Brian's mirror shades and Beruk's fake mustache to resemble the Unibomber.

Dexter and I also talked about his Drow Ranger "Faelonia" and visited some electronics stores and Pandemonium Books & Games, our favorite shop in Central Square, Cambridge, Mass., before I dropped him off at the Logan Express Bus. Dex decided to fly back south rather than endure another 7-hour bus ride.

Alas, although Thomas K.Y. has returned from his family trip to Japan, he's been too busy to rejoin the gaming group. We have sketchy plans to try to screen "The Prestige," "Flushed Away," or "Casino Royale" in the coming weekends, and I've got the Super MegaFest genre convention right before Thanksgiving, which Janice and I will be spending in Upstate New York with her immediate family.

This past Saturday, I ran a D20 "Mutants & Masterminds" 2nd Ed.: "Drake's Port" one-shot. As always, the pickup game was a lot of fun, including a fight with vampiric sharks and penguins in an aquarium, time travel, a cult summoning a Cthuloid monster, and old and new costumed vigilantes meeting! I hope that Dexter/"Neutralizer-X" and other friends will continue to make such cameos.

Speaking of superheroes, Dex/"Dalance," David I.S./"the Excoriator," and I (as "Nightfall IIb" and "the Emerald Quarrel") have continued to play in the "City of Heroes" multiplayer online game! See http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/dimensionalcorpsonline/ for some related discussions. Steve M.R. has been unable to fully participate as "the Blazing Corona" because of technical problems, but I hope that he and others will eventually join us.

As Steve's blog has noted (http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-zA8iOK8iaalgc0hpoQY-?cq=1&p=207), this past Tuesday's U.S. elections provided an opportunity for a significant course correction in domestic and foreign policy. I've made no secret of my liberal sympathies, but I hope that both ascendant Democrats and chastened Republicans will be able to work together for a better future for us all.

I have strongly disagreed with the current administration in the White House regarding its erosion of civil rights and use of gay marriage as a "wedge" issue, stubborn stance toward the ongoing carnage in Iraq while allowing atomic proliferation in North Korea and Iran, laissez faire environmental and health care stances, and no-tax-and-spend fiscal policies.

While I'm not yet convinced that the Democrats have articulated clear and executable alternatives, I'm glad that the American public has given them a chance. On the state level, the absentee governorship of Mitt Romney and negative campaigning of Kerry Healey directly led to the victory of idealist Devall Patrick. I wish all of us good luck.

This coming weekend, I'm tempted to go to the United Fan Con genre entertainment event in Springfield, Mass., but I'll probably rake leaves and catch up on filing photographs and comic books. I hope that you also have a chance to enjoy the relatively warm (if damp) early autumn weather–at least for those of you not in Buffalo!

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!

Friends, I hope the arrival of autumn is going well for you. I'm going to try to mix up the format of these weblog postings a bit, and I welcome any constructive criticism. While I'll continue to provide updates on recent events, I also hope to add autobiographical information. as well as more in-depth political musings and entertainment reviews.

First off, here's the first installment of my background. My father was born in the rural province of Flanders in Belgium, and my mother was born on the island of Panay in the Philippines. Their small hometowns of Roeselare and Molo suffered under the occupation of the Nazis and Japanese, respectively, in World War II, but my parents and their many siblings had otherwise happy childhoods. They met in the Philippines in the mid-1960s before coming to the United States of America…

Much more recently, 0n Saturday, 2 September 2006, Janice and I hosted a D20 "Mutants & Masterminds" 2nd Ed.: "Drake's 7" superhero session. I ran a game during the long weekend instead of on that Tuesday night, since I knew that I'd probably be working later. The current characters defeated a sinister simian in his lighthouse lair and attended a masquerade ball. On the past few Sundays, I've continued playing the "City of Heroes" online multiplayer game with Dexter V.H. (or rather, having Blaster "Gwydion" knocked out by mutated gang members and revived by "Midnight Hand").

The following weekend, Janice and I swung by our old haunts in Norwood, Mass., including the New England Comics there. I bought more Halloween costumes and heard from Byron V.O. down in St. Louis for the first time in a while. This past weekend (Sept. 16), Janice and I went to Harvard and Central Squares in Cambridge, Mass., and to the new L.L. Bean outlet in Burlington. We then met Thomas K.Y. in Lexington and had lunch at a Vietnamese restaurant in Arlington.

We also watched the videotaped premiere of the Cartoon Network's "Fantastic Four" series. The latest adaptation of Marvel Comics' first family of superheroes was decent–I like the characters and angular style of the French animation, but the writing isn't yet up to the standard set by the Timm/Dini version of D.C. Comics' Batman, Superman, and the Justice League. While several of my friends still watch Fox's long-running Sunday night cartoon comedies, including "The Simpsons," I prefer superhero series such as "The Batman" or epic fantasy such as "Avatar: the Last Airbender."

We'll see how good the upcoming "Legion of Superheroes" is, as well as returning shows such as pre-Superman adolescent angst on "Smallville" and young-adult sleuth "Veronica Mars" on the new "CW" network. I've enjoyed military space opera "Stargate SG1," which will be replaced for a half season by the SciFi Channel's revisionist and increasingly dark "Battlestar Galactica" and the second series of the BBC's revived "Doctor Who." David I.S. and I are both looking forward to these. The only new network show I plan to try out is NBC's "Heroes."

In terms of old shows, I have to admit watching the reruns of the original "Star Trek" (soon to be digitally remastered) and "Star Trek: the Next Generation" on G4, as well as the WB's farewell broadcast of the pilots of "Buffy: the Vampire Slayer" and "Angel." It's interesting to note how influential those science fiction and horror classics have been on an entire generation of fans and later programs. Janice and I have also watched some professional football, since I'm not a big baseball fan.

Mainstream television that I occasionally watch includes the silly but sympathetic simpletons on "My Name Is Earl," the painfully funny "Office" (like chocolate and beer, I prefer the more bitter British version to the sweeter American one), and the Discovery Channel's "MythBusters." FX's "Rescue Me" and "Nip/Tuck" approach the level of quality of HBO's much-lauded melodramas, IMHO.

Tomorrow night is the last "Drake's 7" session for now, and this coming weekend, I'll be hosting high school friends Damon F.P. and Steve M. We plan to go into Boston's North End on Saturday and maybe go hiking on Sunday. I've also made tentative plans to meet Cliff & Eliza Y. in Framingham in the coming weeks for fondue, and Byron may be visiting in early December. So many friends to hang out with, so little time…