New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

Come on in and shoot the breeze! This is the place for anything and everything not related to sports or politics. Please take political discussions off-site!
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Borealis
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#301 Post by Borealis »

Codgers wrote:
John wrote:So you're from Connecticut, Chris? You should have been here when the Amsterdam Lions were the Connecticut Nutmeggers!
That's what I was thinking! Raise a glass to the long-lost 'Meggers...

Welcome Chris! Amsterdam has been a pretty strong franchise of late so you are in a good spot.
Go Amsterdam Nootmuskaaters!!!
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#302 Post by Duane »

I know Chris will do the IL proud, he is a builder.
Welcome aboard

IL RULES!!!!!

-- Fri Sep 30, 2016 11:50 am --
fhomess wrote:Welcome to the league, Chris! Cool to have a CT Yankee fan take over the team.
Wasn't that (A Connecticut Yankee or something similar) a movie way back when? Maybe John 'The Duke' Wayne?
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Even though we fell short against Duluth in 2026 ... and SS in 2027 and 2029 8-o
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#303 Post by Borealis »

Thoroughbreds wrote:I know Chris will do the IL proud, he is a builder.
Welcome aboard

IL RULES!!!!!

-- Fri Sep 30, 2016 11:50 am --
fhomess wrote:Welcome to the league, Chris! Cool to have a CT Yankee fan take over the team.
Wasn't that (A Connecticut Yankee or something similar) a movie way back when? Maybe John 'The Duke' Wayne?
I believe it was a Mark Twain story...
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#304 Post by Akira »

Welcome, Chris. A former NYer here myself.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#305 Post by Zach Scott »

Thanks for all the warm welcomes. Here's to hoping I don't destroy this franchise ha
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#306 Post by Underground »

Hi Guys! I'm really excited to be participating in the PEBA universe once again. It's really great to see familiar member names and team logos once again.

I've been a long time baseball fan, favoring the Cardinals (second only to the Yankees in championships), as a lifelong Saint Louis area resident. I remember my grandpa taking me to games where I saw Bob Gibson pitch. Though at the time, to me, he seemed just another good Cardinal player. I clearly remember Lou Brock and the Brockabrella. Willie McGee was one of my personal favorites, for his humble approach. Jose Oquendo was also a favorite of mine for his utility. I was not a big fan of the slugfest sideshow Big Mac performed wonderfully in. Because playoff hopes were beyond reach. While casual fans and non-fans flocked to Busch Stadium, my interested faded, with a bit of a resentment.

I recently watched the documentaries Fastball and No No: A Dockumentary.

Here are some opinions that might trigger discussion.
Steroid era players deserve their place in the Hall of Fame, along with Pete Rose, at a minimum for his prominence as a player (my hero for besting Cobb's hits record), along with all the other cheaters previously inducted.
Honus Wagner was the best player of his day, though I'd have trouble disregarding the impressive statistics of his rival Ty Cobb.
I agree with sentiments of Cobb that Ruth walking the bases after knocking a ball over a fence was not good for the game.
The Designated Hitter should never have come to existence and should be immediately abolished (though I'm not holding my breath).

My perspectives may have been formed as a boy who needed to take advantage of abilities consistent with my nicknames "speedy" and "lightning", sacrificing my body in the dirt, along with intelligence rather than brawn, to contribute to baseball teams. I eventually gave up the sport when entering high school, switching to slow pitch softball which lasted into my late 40s.

I have far too many hobbies and interests to list here. Highlights include music, history (particularly war), science, as well as a wide range of atypical social, cultural, religious, spiritual, psychological, and philosophical notions. I was an avid reader until I became busy with career and family as an adult. I typically checked out my limit of books from the library on a weekly basis, even with a young family and career. Learning about my interest of the month. Then becoming quickly bored after I'd learned all I wished to understand about each topic, ready to move on to the next. One of my favorites was studying to become an FCC licensed General Class Amateur radio operator. But not spending more than a few minutes on the air. I went as far as taking a few lessons toward a pilot license. I abandoned the dream of flying aircraft due to significant obstacles in opposition of benefits. Such as cost and the tragic consequences of mistakes.

I've always been interested in games. I prefer games that involve study, learning, and decision processes, rather than "play". Risk, Battleship, Stratego, chess, Feudal, Third Reich, poker, bridge, and spades, amongst others.

Computer games became my preferred form after purchasing Aces of the Pacific for my first Gateway home PC. Favorite titles included Mech Warrior, Panzer General, The Operational Art of War, Age of Empires, Total War, Civilizations, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Sim City, Railroad Tycoon, Hearts of Iron, Mount and Blade: Warband, West Front, Diamond Mind Baseball, and Season Ticket.

I still have the boxes from most of these games in my basement. Opening the box from a retail store, which included a floppy disk, is quite different than the online experience of today.

The first computer game I remember playing was a text-based Star Trek, using new fangled video displays rather than only punch cards and printouts. A chess game on a friend's Tandy with cassette tape based primary storage device, predated that. For some reason, I don't consider that as having been a computer game.

I've started creating mods to computer games in the last few years.

I remember Civilization and Diplomacy interactions with PEBA members in the past. As well as somewhat of a less formal game guessing who the good guys and bad guys were. Particularly well run with Lego images. Can anybody remind me of the name of that game? LOL

I tend to question and think deeply about everything. Including common sense, which many consider so pat, trivial, fundamental, and obvious, as not requiring assessment or experimentation. I consider acceptance at face value of such preconceived notions as common NONsense. After all, the world is not flat. The theory of relativity revealed how extremely limited even our most thorough collective human scientific thoughts had previously been. A penny saved is really only a penny earned in extremely limited circumstances. LOL

And if you have not yet noticed, words and ideas spew from my mind as a firehose rather than trickle. I have become quite the extrovert, despite my roots as an introvert rarely sharing much of anything with others. These days when nobody is around to chat with, thoughts roll off my fingers onto the keyboard rather than my tongue. One acquaintance commented "I rarely read novels. But when I do, it is a Facebook post by James".

I've gratefully accepted a position as General Manager of the London Underground.

I had been the General Manager of the Lupin Cliff Hangers of the LRS, from the initial bidding process, wherein human GMs took over the LRS management after the 2009 season, until shortly before the close of the 2018 season. If my recollection is accurate, Kevin (Shin Seiki) was involved in that process as well. Not sure if any of those other original LRS GMs are still around. I'd be curious to hear how many of the initial PEBA GMs have been involved for the long haul.

So many things have changed in the PEBA universe during my absence. One of my favorite aspects of the PEBA are the exciting changes and dynamic movement. Though I was a bit surprised to discover that some of the LRS has been absorbed into the PEBA.

It will take quite a while to get back up to speed with the Constitution, how things work, catch up on articles, story lines, characters, details of the Underground, etc. I intend to be quite active in the universe. If it seems I'm sleeping for a while, I'm probably just soaking up details in the background. My presence will most likely soon seem over familiar.

I consider myself an active trader. I would not be surprised to eventually undergo a complete face lift of the London organization. But first, I'd just like to feel somewhat comfortable while I patiently plot my master strategy. In any case, I am always very open to receiving any trade offer or interest.

I've been involved for quite a while with the World Baseball Hierarchy (initial GM of the Pacora Jaguars, current GM of the Seoul Warlords). I took a hiatus from the WBH as well as the PEBA for a while. I'm glad to be active in both OOTP online leagues again.

I wonder if I've forgotten to mention anything. LOL You'll be sure to hear about it, if I have.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#307 Post by John »

Welcome back, James! I can't tell you how happy I am to see you've returned to the league! I remember our Civilization games well. And that LEGO guessing-game? That was Mafia!, run by the former GM of Connecticut/Amsterdam, Frank. :D
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#308 Post by Underground »

Thanks for the reminder, John:
John wrote:That was Mafia!, run by the former GM of Connecticut/Amsterdam, Frank. :D
I noticed "working hard" in your signature. I presume that might be related somewhat to your literary work. I had interest in reading. Unfortunately, I have little time to commit to most of the many tasks on my list of self inspired endeavors.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#309 Post by Leones »

Welcome back James. Former LRS-er (Edo Battousai) here. There's good representation of the old LRS in the PEBA ranks. Several old GMs still kicking around.

Honus Wagner was always a favorite of mine too. Also enjoyed Fastball and No No. Can't recall the title but there was another film similar to those about knuckleballers. It was pretty good too.

Sounds like we have similar interests in history science and war gaming. Always wanted to play Thrid Reich but before Iever managed to my shelves got loaded with other titles. For a great strategic thinking game that oozes history and play pretty eaily I can't recommend "Twilight Stuggle" enough. The war aspect is a bit abstracted but it's a great game and they have a digital version available on Steam. The digital version makes a great AI opponent by itself but I like to use it with the board on the table.

Good luck running the London franchise! The IL Atlantic is pretty balanced.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#310 Post by Borealis »

Welcome Back, Jim!!!

There's a few of the original group still hanging around here, as well as a couple from the early first wave of newbies (hand raised). Some of the former-LRS guys, too. You'll find there's a couple of WBH-mates here as well...

There's a certain irony with your taking charge in London as the second LRS GM to man the helm!

Speaking of old-timers (and old-timers in trouble), gotta have a lot of love for 'Shoeless' Joe!!!

Good luck with the Underground - it's been a tough year with tons of injuries, but there's still a lot of talent there.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#311 Post by Duane »

James, nice to see you again.
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Even though we fell short against Duluth in 2026 ... and SS in 2027 and 2029 8-o
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#312 Post by Akira »

Good to have you back in the fold James.
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#313 Post by Denny »

Welcome back James!
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#314 Post by Underground »

Thanks guys for the welcomes!

By the way, I previously had been going by my unofficial nickname of "Jim", which was not actually chosen by me. I prefer now to go by my official name of James. Wouldn't really matter either way to me much. I am pointing it out to perhaps clear up confusion as well as state my preference. Many people who have known me longer than the past few years still call me "Jim".
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Re: New members: Introduce yourself in this thread

#315 Post by Sandgnats »

Hi James. Nice to meet ya! Welcome back.
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