Weekend in San Diego
Friday night, Mark and I left Claremont for San Diego, intending to play some games, visit some friends, and enjoy the time away. Mark got an automatic transmission car from his no-longer-able-to-drive grandmother so we took that, allowing us both to drive for the weekend. We headed down the 57 to the 5 and hit little traffic, having had little luck going south on the 15 at a similar hour last semester. So began our weekend.
As we did last time, we spent Friday night at Matty and Yip's apartment in La Jolla. They have a great take-out (or sit-down) Italian place nearby so we chowed on lasagna and tortellini and chicken and garlic bread. Matty and Yip both seem mostly happy in San Diego. Matt is studying computer science at UCSD and Yip is developing the VS collectible card game at Upper Deck. They have a great two-story apartment with a beautiful view of the complex's hottub. Yip has a rough commute but Matt is within a walk and shuttle ride from school. It's always great to see these guys---whenever I was bored or lonely or just itching for some fun at Mudd I could always cruise by their suites and see what random stuff they were doing. Now, we still eat and drink and play games and chat and catch up but we can only do it with a two hour drive. Such is life.
Saturday, Mark and I headed out early to play in the M:tG BoK Pre-Release at the Sheraton near the airport in San Diego. We drove through some thick, eerie fog on the way there but the day just turned out beautifully, with clear blue skies, warm sun and cool breezes. While Mark and I were waiting in line to sign-up, I noticed an ultimate player from Bucket a few people behind us. I introduced myself to him---his name is Keith, he's an electrical engineer/consultant, and he plays Magic and ultimate, both well. It was refreshing to see a good ultimate player and realize he is just a huge nerd like me.
Mark and I both went 2 - 2 in the sealed portion of the event. I made rampant play mistakes and Mark played pretty much perfectly but his cards could not hold up. We took a break for some lunch and fresh air then came back and drafted. I thought I had drafted a fairly good RW aggro but I couldn't deal with the tricks and bounce of a monoblue monstrosity and was thus knocked out first round. Mark had a strong BR with lots of removal and cheap beats, easily taking the field. His final round was against an old guy---well over 60---who I saw cheat over and over and over again. He got into the finals because his opponent didn't keep track of life totals and mismarked it on the sheet. I called him on it one time while observing but didn't catch the game winner. He tried to cheat against Mark but Keith and I policed the round vigilantly---I caught when he tried to play a sorcery as an instant and kept careful records of life totals. Mark beat him soundly, regardless.
After this day of geekiness, Mark and I headed back north, meeting Matt at Mira Mesa to visit AC, Amber, Kat and Sean at their house. Check for another entry soon...