This summer we visited my brother and his girlfriend in Portland and one the two lasting effects of the trip was their introducing us to Settlers of Catan.

It's very weird to me how the game is both obscure and cultlike in its popularity. Being a nerd I'm into games but this game seems to also be popular among people who aren't what you'd normally call gamers. It's kind of like a cross between Monopoly and Risk. It's complex enough to keep you interested but simple enough to pick up pretty quickly.  

So my brother is in town for the holidays and we've been in a Catan frenzy. We've played four games, basically any time we have enough time to squeeze in a game. To make it even more intersting/worse/better, we've started playing with some of the expansion rules (including the one that allows you to play with only two players) and we're especially fond of the "event cards" which replaces rolling the dice with choosing a card instead.




A little less than seventeen years ago I taught my brother how to play chess while visiting him in Costa Rica. Before the trip was over, he was able to kick my ass pretty handily (needless to say we soon stopped playing). I'm getting some ominous deja vu, since in the four games we've played he's beaten me 3-1. Stay tuned to find out how many more games we play before I quit in a pouty fit!