"The typical 'working mathematician' is a Platonist on weekdays and a formalist on Sundays. That is, when he is doing mathematics, he is convinced that he is dealing with an objective reality whose properties he is attempting to determine. But then, when challenged to give a philosophical account of this reality, he finds it easiest to pretend that he does not believe in it after all." Rueben Hersh

Trivia Nights

For several years, I wrote and emceed bar trivia.

Once a year I still try to write and host a night for friends and family.

Here are some Picture Round highlights, mostly featuring "rebus puzzle."

Picture Rounds Archive 2021.pdf

Board Games

Every year during the holidays, I research dozens of games, buy 5 - 10, play test them with friends and family, and then give them away as presents.

Some of the games below are not my personal favorites, but there are people in my life who really like them.

Some of the games below are among my personal favorites, but I don't have people in my life who want to play them on a regular basis.

There are some games missing from this list that I think I would like a lot but haven't had time to learn (e.g., Terraforming Mars, Wingspan). There are other popular games missing from this list that just aren't for me.

My personal preference used to be for long, technical strategy games. These days I play more co-op games or ones where kids and older people can all have fun. I respect that aspects like theme, artwork, piece feel, etc. matter a lot to some people -- but they do not ultimately sway my opinion of a game.

I love board games, but many of my most favorite games require only pen and paper or, better yet, only enthusiastic people.

I've provided public Amazon links for easy access to reviews -- not an endorsement of buying games from Amazon.

HOMER -- The Game

In 2006, my goal for the year was to see video of people in a foreign country playing this game.

If you're college student reading this message, if you have access to a pool table, I strongly advise you to learn to play this game. If you do so, please send me a picture.

WARNING: The group of friends I play this game with have a standing group insurance policy that if something gets broken, whomever was playing has to help pay for the damage.

HOMER (2021v5).pdf