Getting closer to Epic...

I am going to take back that coffee maker. Wish me luck.

The other evening, Monday in fact, we tried Firelands again. For some reason, two weeks in a row, some of our key raid team members haven't been logging in. Mondays* are kind of an awkward day for raiding, but Team One takes priority with their standard Tuesday/Thursday (heck, some of those raiders even go as far to construct their work schedule around raiding time--they are committed). We had a fine group together, and started a few bosses in. I was finally awarded the Gatecrasher ax from Baleroc (never too late to have a happy childhood moment) and this really cool dagger from the big bird, all flamey and 'schtuff. One of my team members had connection issues, and we almost got Ragnaros, ALMOST - so close! But it was new content for some, and it does take a while to coordinate efforts. We'll get you, Sir! WE SHALL!

Ahem, sorry.

But la-de-da, raid is over (my GM is a punctual man) he offered to me and anyone who wanted to go to "Get Matty her bear." Ah, those were sweet words, sir.

The stalwart group of heroes whom I had previously aided in getting their own bears from trolls quickly rallied, and away we went, got my bear, and off we rode into the sunset:

It has seat warmers! And a GPS system, and i-Pod dock! Woot!

Speaking of Bears, Big Bear posted another wonderful post about his, his wife's, and his son's epic adventures in playing WoW. It is awesome to see these adventures through a younger child's eyes. They describe how I felt when I first started playing, and am looking forward to again when Mists comes out. I mentioned in a comment that I have a guildmate, a very nice gentleman, who has been enjoying reading all the new information about Mists, and then sharing it on Mumble. I have asked him politely not to, but he likes to share. That's cool. I'll just start singing the Banana Split theme song in Mumble, and maybe, though the Geneva Conventions have firmly stated "Matty shall not sing in Mumble" he'll get the point. One of my pet peeves are movie trailers which use the best lines from a movie, and then when you go see it, you realize the trailer was better. I don't want that to happen in Mists. But I did consider, what if my GM wants us to have some working knowledge from the Beta? What were his goals? He told me he wanted to be surprised too, which was how Xak, my other favorite GM rolled, too. Such nice young men! Still threatening to go all Jewish mother on them and find them "nice girls." I'd like to read the Trade spam on that:

"<Mataoka> Nice Jewish-mother** type, seeking young women for two Guildmasters who bathe, have jobs, and are funny. Must be between 21-31, non-smokers, and not have daddy-issues. Must be able to put up with raiding times. Dowry negotiable."

Hmm. Maybe not.

Anyway, I'm being patient. I read snippets, because it's tough to completely stay away, and I will concede that there are some things I may want to research prior to release. But mostly I want to be surprised. The older I get the more challenging it is to stay surprised and not veer off into the "I told you so" ditch of disaster.

And with a group like my current raid team, I will go out on a limb and predict fun--they are a great group of guys, and so far, so good. Let's go get 'em, whatever or whomever "'em" turns out to be.

*I like our Monday/Wednesday arrangement.
**All mothers are Jewish mothers, Italian mothers, and any other stereotype you can come up with. You look skinny- are you eating enough? Did you brush your teeth? Don't work too hard!

Theme Song: Bear Necessities