A Goal Without a Plan Is a Wish

We're closing in on two months of 2022 completed. The first month-and-a-half has gone by so quickly, it felt like a good time to check in on my board game goals for the year. 

Before I get to the progress in my eight goals for board gaming this year, I want to be upfront about my lack of entries thus far this year. I am embarking on a career change within the next few months, and preparing for that change has dominated a lot of my time. That's not to say I haven't been able to play games, but if given the choice, I'd rather play the games than write about them.

Let's look back at my eight goals:

1. 12,000 views for the year

2. Restart monthly game days/nights with my friends

3. Play at least 12 games 12 times

4. Finish my Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion campaign

5. Finish the year with ZERO games on my shelf of shame

6. Play every game I own at least once

7. Support 4 creators on Etsy

8. Give a stranger a gift

Here's my current progress in each of these. There is no flubbing or truth-stretching here. I'm going to be 100% transparent.

1. 12,000 views for the year

For all you math-haters out there, that averages out to 1,000 views a month for the year. I surpassed that number in January- 1,103, but am so far quite short in this the shortest of the months. At last check I was at 622 for February.

While I could say the number of views I receive is out of my control and that it's YOUR responsibility, I know that the more blog entries that I produce the more likely I am to attain my goal. So, I need to start pumping out some content and hope that you find it worthy to keep coming back.

2. Restart monthly game days/nights with friends

First of all, I am extremely spoiled. Or at least I feel that way. I have the pleasure of playing games with my family just about every Sunday afternoon and evening. Maybe they won't play all the games I'd like to, but they are very willing to try most new things and I appreciate them for that.

With that being said, there are so many games that I'd like to play that they won't touch. I need my friends for many of them. Plus, I like playing games with them. We're competitive in that we all want to win, but not so competitive that we get angry or upset. I feel we have the perfect balance.

What's not so perfect is that we didn't get together in January. However, I was able to get a few friends to my table in February. We played Scythe and Ankh: Gods of Egypt.

3. Play at least 12 games 12 times

I made a 10x10 for my wife and myself. None of those games are close to the twelve plays yet. We've played two of them twice (Just One and Century: Golem Edition) and two of them three times (Aquatica and Wingspan). 

But I have played seven games at least five times so far:

>Cartographers- 7 times (all solo)

>Coup- 9 times

>Dinosaur Island Rawr 'N Write- 6 times (all solo)

>The Game- 12 times

>Similo- 5 times

>Super Mega Lucky Box- 5 times

>Bandido- 5 times

I'd say that this one is very attainable, but I would like it if some of the game experiences are a little more robust and not simply the small box games.

4. Finish my Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion campaign.

NOPE. Started the year on scenario 8. Still on scenario 8.

5. Finish the year with ZERO games on my shelf of shame

Ok, I crunched some numbers. Sabrina, look away. 

Counting expansions, I have 120 games in my collection- 97 base games and 23 expansions. Let's look at this both ways- with and without expansions.

Of the total 120, I have played 90 of them. That's 70%. That's not a great number. However, if we take out expansions, I've played 84 of 97, about 86.6%.

Looks like I need to play the expansions I have. Of the 23, I've only played six of them. That's not entirely true, as for whatever reason I don't count expansions that only add extra players. But anyway you slice it, having only played 26% of my expansions is terrible.

I feel like I know why, but I'm going to keep my theory to myself. For now.

6. Play every game I own at least once

This one is counting expansions, so the number probably looks pretty ugly, right? Wrong. We're not even two months into the year, and I've managed to play a total of 54. That's exactly 45% of my games. 

Now the not-so-good news. I've exhausted many of the easy to get to the table games. There are some heavy hitters that will be an arduous task to learn and play. Many of the games I'm willing to play solo have also been marked off the list. I'm committed, however.

I've gotten rid of some games so far this year, and more might come off. That's not cheating, that's creating room for new entries.

7. Support four Etsy creators

I've bought from three unique creators so far this year and hope to purchase from more. I bought some new bags to use for Sheriff of Nottingham from Mariposa Craft. They are made from high quality fabric, cut well, and the snap is far superior to what was in the box. I upgraded my Wingspan tokens with some created by PrintNPlay3D. I also ordered these amazing component containers for Pandemic from Parton Prints. 

There are so many great creators making upgrades for your favorite games on Etsy. Make sure you take a look!

8. Give a stranger a gift

Storytime! 

I used a gift card to Target to order the Invaders from Afar expansion for Scythe. Anxiously I awaited its arrival, checking my phone for shipping updates. Finally the day came when it was scheduled to be delivered. 

Ding! The notification! It said that my package was delivered and it was by my door. 

It wasn't. I waited until the next day, but no package. 

Target sent me an email asking if I was satisfied with the delivery. I found the place to click if there was an issue and informed them that my package was NOT delivered. My expectation was that I would be sent to customer service to rectify the situation, but instead, in a very Amazon-esque move, I was informed that a replacement had been ordered on my behalf. 

Long story short, I ended up with two copies and Target told me to keep the extra one as a gift.

A local guy, who had bought games from me before, was coming over to buy a couple more. I asked him if he had Scythe, and when he asked me why, I told him that I was going to give him the expansion if he did. He didn't. But he asked me about it, and decided it was something he would seek out. He grabbed the box that I had offered, and plopped down the money for the other games. It was $10 more than what I was asking, and he said the extra $10 was for the expansion. 

It would have satisfied my goal of giving a gamer a gift, but oh, well. I didn't have change anyway.

How are your gaming goals going so far? Let me know below!

Thanks for reading!