John, Trish, and the Boy go to Houston

Trish and I first met when I was running games at a single day game convention many years ago. As it turned out, she'd signed up for all three of the RPG events I was running that day without realizing they were all run by the same person. I said at the time that we'd either be close friends or bitter enemies by the end of the day because we'd be spending so much time together, and as it happens, we became friends, having very similar tastes in RPGs. Trish turned up in some of my conventions sessions after that. I met her husband John along the way, though we didn't know each other well at the time.

Years passed, and John and Trish moved close to where I lived. The Boy had joined their family by then. Trish couldn't play as often as she used to, but John and I spent a lot more time together and expanded the scope of the games we played together. I'm more of a roleplaying game guy, and John is more of a tactician (though he runs one hell of a game of Paranoia), but we each enjoyed what the other brought to the table. John joined Steve Jackson Games' Men In Black program (of which I was already a member), and we went to a lot of conventions together. We played many a vicious Magic: the Gathering duel.

We all went to MEPACon together a couple of times, Trish and the Boy included, which added flavor to the mix. I'm sure we'll stay in touch, and that I'll see John at game conventions in the future, but we probably won't get to do it quite that way again.

I enjoy going to the local minor league hockey team's games, but my wife doesn't. John isn't a sports fan, but Trish is, so she became my hockey buddy, and we went to several games together over the last couple of years.

It was taking a new job that brought John, Trish, and the Boy here, and it's John taking a new job in Houston that's moving them away. I like the symmetry, but I'll miss the time we used to spend together.