D&D

So I know this just puts the laminated seal on my card-carrying nerd status, but I figure at this point the social circles I skirt from time to time will be none the worse for my confession.

At 39 years old, I'm learning (finally) how to play D&D (that's Dungeons & Dragons to the uninitiated). I had plenty of friends in high school that played, but I never had the time to commit to it (and it does take a considerable amount of time).

I have to admit, though, this game is a tremendous amount of fun. The group I'm playing with--we're mostly all amateurs, except for our DM (Dungeon Master), who has taken it upon himself, quite bravely I might add, to train us up as experienced adventurers--we spend a lot of time laughing over the stupid situations we manage to get ourselves into, and eventually, out of.

For instance, on one early adventure, we were standing at the edge of this chasm, and suddenly we realized that none of us had brought any rope. Three weeks in every direction from any town or village, we're at the edge of a chasm we have to get down, and no rope. Our infinitely patient DM just shook his head in disgust. Then he said, "The heavens open up, and God says, 'Let there be rope.' There. Don't ever expect me to do that for you again! Amateurs." We're learning.

Basically, what this is, is pretend for grown-ups. For a period of time, we agree that this imaginary world is real, and we can be whoever we want, and we agree that we're going to follow a set of rules while we're there. And you know, we know that it isn't really real, but at the end of the day, it feels like we've really been through something, and so the bond that we forge there is real. And that's what it's really all about.