Back from the void!

Summer is over and classes have started up once again.  It's great being in the classroom and teaching labs again!  We've got some really sharp students and it promises to be a very eventful year for Wabash College.

The summer was a great mix of fun and scholarship!  I headed over to the UK for a few weeks, visited my family in Texas, and had two amazing summer research interns cranking out lots of good data in the lab.  I even gave a talk at GenCon this year!  However, the blog didn't get any love this summer, so there's lots to write about as I attempt to catch up.

First, I have to highlight the trip across the pond.  This must have been my fifth visit over and we were able to sneak in and out before the crowds converged for the Jubilee and the Olympics.  London, York, and Bath were just a few of the highlights for this visit.  It was an amazing trip...and I'm already missing the amazing lunches at Nando's, my favorite place on the planet to nab a peri-peri chicken sandwich and chips!

In addition to all of the sightseeing, shopping, and great eating (yes, it can be found in the UK!), I was able to sneak away to a gaming conference!  The train ride to Birmingham was an easy enough stop along the return from York to London.  This was the home of the 2012 UK Games Expo and it was a pretty good time. 

The venue was a little on the small side, and the place was packed!  However, the UK gamers were great people.  The stormtroopers and Daleks were running rampant!  The gaming groups I spoke with were passionate about their hobby and they went all out preparing gorgeous scenery and worked really hard to make sure everyone had a great time.  The dealer hall had a variety of booths that showed off new products and allowed you to demo new games.  I checked out the new items from the folks at Mantic and played a demo of Project Pandora.  It was great fun and I picked up two copies for the minis and tiles alone.  There was a used game booth that had so many good deals that my luggage was bursting at the seems to get it all home.  I spent two and a half days immersed in the best of British gaming culture and I was so happy that I took the time to explore it.  Maybe someday I can time a future trip right so I can spend  few days at Salute.