The first is a game called Crossnet. It’s a mixture of volleyball and the playground game four square, and it’s a blast.
You can have one person per square or two people. And just like four square, those wanting to play line up by square one, waiting for someone to get out.
We did it with a huge group. Our line always had 12-15 people in it, but you never waited long because the games moves fast. We laughed, teased each other, and had a great time.
The other great thing was that we could play it with folks of all ages. We had folks from 55 all the way down to 8 playing. And they all enjoyed it.
If you’re wondering what to do for the next family reunion or group activity, I think you’ll love Crossnet.
*
The next fun activity is a shootout card game called Bang!
It’s played with 4-7 people. Each player is delt a unique Wild West character with special abilities and a role card. Some of the roles are on the side of law and order. Some are on the side of the outlaws.
As you play you shoot it out, try to figure out who the outlaws are, get life points back, acquire guns, steal cards from each other, avoid the dynamite, and more.
The game moves quickly. You can be done in less than 30 minutes, which is perfect for a family or date night. It’s one of our favorite family games.
If you’re looking for a new, fun, quick game to play, give Bang! a try.
Comments Off on Good Stuff! News of the World and two for the Downton Abbey crowd
I recently watched a move and two British TV mini-series that were just terrific.
The movie is News of the World. It’s a Western set in 1870, starring Tom Hanks as Captain Jefferson Kyle Kidd, a former Confederate officer who makes a living traveling from town to town in Texas and reading newspapers to local residents for an admission fee of ten cents.
After departing Wichita Falls, Kidd comes across an overturned wagon on the road and finds the driver, a black freedman, had been lynched. He also finds the stray, young white girl who only speaks Kiowa (the language of an American Indian tribe), that the freedman has been transporting.
Kidd learns from the girl’s paperwork that she is Johanna Leonberger, who had been kidnapped and by Kiowa six years earlier. She doesn’t speak English. Doesn’t want to go with Kidd. But Kidd is tasked with getting her to safety. Of course there are all sorts of perils and issues along the way that threaten that goal.
There’s suspense, action, drama, bad guys, and some poignant moments that will move your heart strings. If you like westerns or Tom Hanks, I think you’ll love this movie. It’s the best western I’ve seen in a long time.
***
Those of you enjoyed Downton Abbey will be very happy to hear that Julian Fellowes, who was the executive producer for that series and wrote many of the episodes, is back and has written two more historical dramas with that same type of feel.
The first is Dr. Thorne,a three-episode miniseries based on the novel by Anthony Trollope.
It’s set in the late 1800s. Mary Thorne and Frank Gresham, the only son and heir of the squire of Greshamsbury, fall in love. However, Frank’s parents want him to marry wealth because they have very little to leave their son. Mary is penniless and of suspicious birth. She’s not anything at all that would help Frank in the world. And so the drama begins. You get to enjoy the historical setting, the manners, and romantic suspense.
The second is Belgravia, a six-episode miniseries set in the 1800s and based on the novel by Julian Fellowes himself.
For you geography buffs, Belgravia is an actual place, an affluent district of London. And the story set there is about two couples. The first, the Richmonds, are part of the aristocracy. The other, the Trenchards, are from the business class.
The Richmond’s had one child, a son. The Trenchards had one child, a daughter. The two fell in love. But the son was killed in the battle of Waterloo. And the daughter died in childbirth. However, it was an illegitimate childbirth that the Richmonds don’t know about. The Trenchards thought it best, to retain the reputation of their daughter, to have someone else raise him.
Twenty-five years later, however, both couples still feel the hole those deaths left in their hearts. Mrs. Trenchard feels it’s time to reveal the truth to the Mrs. Richmond. But it does not go as planned. Especially not when the Richmond’s nephew wants the Richmond’s inheritance and is willing to remove all obstacles in his path.
It’s a story full of manners, heartbreak, suspense, hope, and, well, I won’t tell you the ending. But I will say that if you like these types of historical dramas, you’ll probably love this.
Behold the cover. A big thanks to Dixon Leavitt for the art.
And here’s the description we’ll be using.
Nobody in their right mind travels through this place.
All Ferran wants to do is get the cattle to Broniss, get paid, and free his family from the threat of slavery. But an unexpected and terrible enemy takes most of the crew prisoner in the Blight.
Ferran, Winwallom, and Sura, the fierce Mashadian girl none of the boys trust, must free them.
But how will they when the trio is vastly outnumbered, they’re days from help, and other things lurk in the woods?
I’m so excited to get this book into your hands. I had a blast writing it.
I was saddened today to learn that Dave Wolverton, best known by his pen name David Farland, passed away this week.
Dave was such an incredibly helpful mentor to me. It was the workshop he held at BYU back in 1993 that made me think I could actually write stories that entertained people. It was that workshop that prompted me to start submitting to the magazines.
And when I finally got my first publication, he was involved. He was the initial judge for Writers of the Future when my story won a first prize. And he was there, helping lead the writer’s workshop in Cocoa Beach, Florida and cheering all of us on.
Later, when I started writing novels, it was his thoughtful feedback that helped me improve my second novel to a publishable level. He believed in it enough to write a recommendation for me to Tor Books. When they decided to publish me, it was Dave that agreed to take me on tour with him. I enjoyed hours and hours driving with him, chatting, laughing, and signing at bookstores in Washington, Oregon, and California.
He was always interested. Always friendly. Always willing to talk and share his expertise. And always had great stories to share about his life.
As an entertainer, his stories thrilled me. In college, I was swept away by SERPENT CATCH, PATH OF THE HERO, ON MY WAY TO PARADISE, and THE GOLDEN QUEEN trilogy. My wife and I had so many delightful hours reading that trilogy to each other.
I still remember going to the bookstore in Pleasanton, California in 1998, hoping to get a copy of RUNELORDS when it was first published, being so excited when I found it on the self, opening it, and reading the first pages. They completely enthralled me. Blew me away. I felt like I was in the cinema. I loved that series and was always waiting for the final book.
I loved Dave’s stories. I appreciated so much his many kindnesses to me and his good humor.
May you rest in paradise, my friend, until the trumpet sounds.
There are a boatload of characters that live in Rich County, Utah.
One of them is Gary Ogilvie.
If you were to see him at church or waiting in line for a raspberry shake at one of the fast food joints by Bear Lake, you’d just see a pleasant, mild-mannered gentleman.
But Gary has quite the past.
He’s been a police officer down on the Wasatch Front, a sheriff in Rich County, a Utah highway patrol officer, an internal affairs investigator for the Utah Department of Corrections, and an adult probation and parole supervisor. And a miner and many other things.
And, boy, does he have some stories.
Most with him wearing the badge, but others when he wasn’t wearing the badge. For example, Gary was himself hauled in by the cops when he was a teen.
Gary wrote many of his stories down in a journal, and I had the privilege of reading them one day a year or two ago. They were fabulous. Some were funny, some shocking, some poignant.
The good news for you is that Gary has recorded a number of them on YouTube. He did this for his grandkids, but you and I get to benefit.
If you enjoy real life cop stories, many with a humorous twist, and good-humored narrators, then you’re going to love listening to Grandpa O’s Stories over on YouTube.
In fact, I don’t think you’ll be able to listen to just one.
My bet is you’ll want to hear the next and the next.
Join My Newsletter!
Get notification of new releases, deals, and other goodies
