Beyond the Cheetos and the Mountain Dew – A Different Take on Gaming Food

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There’s a bit of a stereotype about us RPG players. Well, okay, there’s a lot of them, but, specifically, I’m talking about the ones about us and food. We tend to be overweight. We love Doritos, Cheetos, and Mountain Dew. We live on Coke & M&Ms. Well, actually, that one is true about my friend Doc, but otherwise… This stereotype is so prevalent that it even finds its way into humor about gaming, like the song D&D by Stephen Lynch and the Dead Alewives audio sketches about … [Read more...]

Geeky Cake: Lobster Stuffed With Tacos a la Simpsons

Completed Candy Tacos

Our friend Andrew decided that for his 30th birthday, we should have a Day of Delicious Foods at his house. We all started to think about what dishes might be appropriate for such a day. This Simpsons clip immediately popped into our heads: So we did it. Lobster Stuffed With Taco Cake Our inspiration came from these two sites: Lobster Cake Candy Tacos - we used chopped maraschino cherries for the tomatoes We gathered up all the necessary ingredients and went to work making … [Read more...]

Last Minute Valentine’s Day Gifts For Your Geek

cthulhuchick

Nothing says love like losing your sanity! Valentine's Day is on Monday and you're still looking for a gift idea for your geek sweetie? Yikes! Let us give you a hand, but be forewarned, you may be paying some extra shipping to get it there in time. Crochet Cthulhu from CthulhuChick Elder gods know how to love! Check out CthulhuChick's Etsy store, where she has tons of adorable little handmade Cthulhus, just waiting for homes. There's even a Cylon-thulhu and a Chef-thulhu. And a bonus: You … [Read more...]

A Loaf of Bread, a Jug of Wine, & Thou: Romance & Food

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As I write these words, I'm recovering from a delightful Thanksgiving dinner. Rather than just succumb to a tryptophan-induced coma while watching "The Wiz," I pulled myself up out of my club chair, poured myself another mug of apple cider, and sat down to do some typing. As I did so, I mused on the old saying ,"The shortest way to a man's heart is through his stomach." Food has certainly played a part in many memorable times for me, and it seemed only fitting that it be the subject of an … [Read more...]

All I Needed to Know About Japanese Food, I Learned from Ranma ½

anime food spread

One of the great things about living in Vancouver is the sheer wealth of Japanese restaurants we have here. You can’t go a block without at least two sushi places ready to fill you with rice and raw fish. However, as anyone who has been to Japan will tell you, sushi is actually just one dish in a culture filled with cool and unusual tasties. In fact, when I was living in Japan, I probably only had sushi once every few months or so; the rest of the time I was gorging myself on the other treats … [Read more...]

Urban Tribes & Orphan Thanksgiving: Family Is What You Make of It

trustfall

Sometime back, I read a book called “Urban Tribes” by Ethan Watters. The book had a profound effect on me, and I came to realize that it was very relevant to my living situation. In a nutshell, the book is about the development of social circles, comparing the more family oriented circles of the past with the more friend oriented circles of the present. In the past, the book posits, a person was expected to finish school, get a job, get married, and raise a family, pretty much in that order … [Read more...]

The +5 CHA Community (AKA #fit4gencon and YOUR favorite con, too!)

Big news! You've probably seen the #fit4gencon movement if you follow geeky folks on Twitter. We use it when we're talking about our healthstyle - eating better, working out, etc. But there were folks who felt left out. They said, "I don't/can't go to GenCon, but I want to be a part of this super cool idea!" Introducing... The +5 CHA Community! Check out our (very) new digs at plus5CHA, where we have our very own, 100% private members-only forum for geeks looking to get … [Read more...]

Cooking Is As Easy As Being a DungeonMaster

Farmers Market Haul for 7/4: Squash Blossoms, Passport Melon, Tomatoes, Okra, Potatoes, Corn, Pattypan Squash, Onions....

It's funny how predictably this happens. As part of my healthstyle, I've been cooking a lot of meals at home using ingredients fresh from the farmers market. And every time I tweet about something I'm cooking, I get responses like this: WHOA! How did you DO THAT? That looks AMAZING! I wish I could cook awesome things like that. I don't think I could ever learn how to cook stuff that looks that delicious. That must have taken forever to make! And every time I see these … [Read more...]

Fit4GenCon: E’s Healthstyle Progress Update #2

I made a non-resolution that I was going to rock a new healthstyle in 2010, so here I am, being accountable and writing an update about how things are going. If you're totally lost, you may want to go back and read these posts first: What Will You Look Like at GenCon 2010? Get Fit By Becoming A Food Geek (guest post by Darya of SummerTomato) E’s Journey To Food Geek and Fit4GenCon: Part 1 Geeks Can Cook: Apple Pie Breakfast (#fit4gencon) E’s 2010 Goal Word (Not … [Read more...]

Tips for a Great Geek Gathering

realgenius

Last weekend I went to a World of Warcraft party.  I kept wanting to call it a LAN party, but that's not really accurate; still, it was a bunch of people and their computers, in a house, having a good time.  Really, it was a fantastic party, and I realized that many of the features that made it great can be applied to any setting.  So, if you're planning a video-game marathon, a geek gathering or just a regular old party, here's a few tips to set it apart: Eat Like Grown-Ups At the … [Read more...]