Welcome to Game Night Out

When I was a kid, once a week was family game night. One that designated night, the family would order out, pick a board game, and have fun for a few hours. This lasted until I was in middle school - a time when life got busier and more complicated.

Never the less, I found that I really enjoyed playing games with people and found that it was a good way to bond with friends and family. 

During the height of the Pandemic, some of my friends and I started to have virtual game nights. We used Zoom to connect and play Dungeons and Dragons or JackBox instead of the traditional board games. It was a way to stay connected and have some semi balance of normalcy during a very uncertain time.

Now that the world has opened back up and people are out and about, game nights have once again become infrequent. Though, I've still managed to find friend groups to play games like Uno or Exploding Kittens, most of my friends want to go out instead of have a night in.

And that's not a bad thing.

However, a third space has started popping up on my radar that combines the need to go out with the fun of a board game night.

These are known as bar-cades. 

I first came to know the term bar-cade in the mid-2010s. These were bars with arcade games, especially catered to people over the age of 21. These are not Dave And Busters. These are bars that allowed you to play skee-ball or Pac-Man while you get tipsy. These places were typically loud with low light, but a ton of club-like dancing energy (most had some kind of dance floor). I primarily went to these places in D.C. and New Jersey. 

The bar-cades I'm going to now are a little different. They still allow you to order alcoholic beverages, but they might also offer an array of board games for you and your friends to play. I spent a hilarious evening teaching one group of friends how to play Clue while enjoying a more traditional bar like atmosphere - no dance floors in sight. 

Praise to whomever designed this box art.

Most recently, I went to a place that was more of a café rather than a traditional bar-cade (even ones with just board games). This place was in Manassas, Virginia and offered an array of snakes, drinks (alcoholic and non-alcoholic), and games to play. Some of the games are for sale, but there is an entire backwall dedicated to games people can play for an evening and then put back. 

The atmosphere was the most relaxed I'd been to and it was a lot more family and teen friendly than other "bar-cades" that I'd been to. It felt like a safe place for kids looking for a little independence as well as a fun nostalgic hangout for grownups (like me) who don't really like the bar scene. And though the 21+ drink list was comprehensive, there was also a fairly big mocktail menu. Snakes could be small shareables to full blown meals and there was a tiny dessert menu.

This was a fantastic space for a game night.

While I occasionally still want to go to the louder bar-cades with flashy arcade games and dancing, I'm really happy that these quieter spaces are popping up. It's especially nice that some are making an effort to include teenagers and families. I could have easily seen my high school (heck even college) friend groups going to a place like the one in Manassas to have a bit of independence from our parents or other adults. 

Game nights are still a lot of fun and I'm glad that I don't have to stay at home or invite people over to have them. Bar-cades are varied and can range from 21+ spaces to family friendly. I hope that more of these places (especially of the family friendly variety) keep popping up.

Until next week.

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Welcome To Dating

As Dot Would Say "I'm Cute!"

Dating in high school and college is very different from dating after you've graduated. For one thing, you aren't forced to interact with people your age for hours on end every day. You have to search our potential partners, which can be twice as hard if you don't like going out.

My first significant other out of college, was actually an old college friend. We lived an hour from each other, but they were going through army med school and I was just starting out, so the distance didn't bother us. Now, though, if I want to date someone it's different.

In college/high school I might have a class or two with a potential date. I might have even been in the same club or sports team. It was easy to know who they were and what they were interested in (and Facebook helped). I thought that dating in college was easy, especially since I ignored anything remotely romantic in high school.

Now, I have a couple of options for finding a date:

1) Going to a bar - you have drinks to help loosen you up, but it can be loud and and hard to start a conversation with someone. I've tried it a few times and none of them ended well. Other people I know enjoy meeting people this way.

2) Online dating - though I haven't tried this option, several of my friends have been really happy with it. My roommate from college lucked out and found a great person. My current roommate didn't have the same luck and met their current significant other outside of a bar in Hoboken. I think it's one of the easier ways to date in this day and age. After all, the media is constantly complaining about how Millennials are attached to their phones.

3) Random everyday occurrences - though I don't recommend dating co-workers (that could be awkward), there are many day-to-day interactions that could lead to potential dates. For example on this week's episode of The Flash (it's on the CW, Hulu, and Netflix) one of my favorite characters asked out the coffee barista. Another example would be me getting someone's phone number at the farmer's market (I then proceeded to run away, but if you are aware of who I am, this fact wouldn't shock you). You never know how you'll meet.

You never know who you're going to meet in the so called "real world". You might run into a friend you haven't seen in years and rekindle a friendship. You might stumble across someone who has the same interest in Halo that you do.

My point is, that I never expect to meet the people that I do. For better or worse they end up in my life and I have to figure out if they should stay in it.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share or leave a comment. I love hearing for my readers and I hope you like hearing from me. Now, if only I didn't run away when someone gives me a complement.

Welcome To The Social Life

I'm gonna party all night long...

This weekend was crazy. It was nice to take it easy today and do some cooking and cleaning. I even set up my GameCube and started Luigi's Mansion. How can a Mario game be so scary while being so ridiculous? 

I started the weekend by going to a party on Friday. My roommate invited me along to their old roommate's graduation party. I said sure, I'd love to meet some new friends. The party was at a family's house. Of course the first thing I am asked is if I'm 21. I'm not 21. I'm a few years passed 21. I don't think I'll ever stop looking like I'm teenager.

The party ended around midnight. Where did we go next? A bar of course.

Now I'm normally not the most social person you will meet (I'm an introvert, I like my quiet time). I stayed out til almost 3am. It's been a while since I did that (I think Las Vegas, but definitely college). It was fantastic.

Yesterday evening I went out to a bar to watch the first part of the hockey game (how the hell did the Blackhawks score 3 minutes into the $&@% game?!?!). I was on my own and the bar is less than a 15 minute walk. I stayed about an hour and a half just talking with random people and watching the game. I left after the Blackhawks ($&@% them) scored 2 minutes into the second period. There was no way the Ducks were going to recover after that beating.

Now contrary to what has been said about introverts, I am not shy. I like meeting new people. It just needs to be on my terms. I might hold back at first, get to know the environment and then strike up a conversation with the person closest to me.

"Where everyone knows your name."

While at the bar I met several couples. One man called me a "browd". That's a new one. Honestly I didn't actually believe the accent here would be that pronounced. Like many other things, I was wrong. I also got a lot of "where are you from" questions, as my "accent" becomes easier to hear when I'm tired/more relaxed/have been drinking. No one here says y'all, that's weird.

If you're new and town and want to go out, go out. How else will you meet anyone? If you don't like bars, try hanging out in coffee shops, see if there's a farmers market or go to the library. Meeting people online is also an option as there are a lot of groups who post events online. 

You never know who you'll meet until you strike up a conversation.

Until next week.

If you enjoyed this post (or it really pissed you off) please like, share and/or leave a comment. I love hearing from my readers and I hope y'all love hearing from me.