One of the things I have been up to is learning BYOND and helping Tyler create a game using the interface/program. Talk about brining back memories! When I was a tyke (say, 8th grade), my friends and I sat around our Commodore 64's, typing in programs from Compute's Gazette and other magazines... While walking through a couple of the tutorials, I was reading the code while Tyler typed it in, and then I would explain what that piece of code was for (creating a character, making grass, attacking monsters, etc..). Before long, we had a functional 'game' in which the player could walk around, killing monsters and collect gold for his/her trouble! With a little ingenuity, we added our own "inventory" system, though it is very rudimentary. The program (BYOND) is actually pretty easy to understand once you start. Turns out, it is also FREE! Get it from BYOND.com... What is great aout the program is that it is inherently multiplayer - that is, as soon as someone knows the address to your game, they can just join in!
Dad is finally on his way to Kuwait as I type this... He left Houston at 4pm and headed for Dulles. From there, he began his flight straight for Kuwait. He was excited and nervous all in one fell swoop. My Mom said we can track his flight, but I forgot to get the info... DUH! Hopefully he'll be able to keep in touch with email and Mom said something about him getting a calling card from the company... Guess we'll have to wait and see... :-)
The kids are getting more and more excited about Santa coming! They wrapped the presents they got for each other today, and put those presents under the tree. They were both excited to see the packages they got for each other. Emily helped me wrap Shan's presents, and of course Shan tried to sneak peeks. I fully expect her to be shaking, squeezing, and guessing... I think Tyler has been checking out the presents we put under the tree for him and Emily. I'm not sure if Emily has been poking around or not... We decided to put out just a couple of the kids presents, then lay out the rest when they go to bed before Santa comes. That way, when they wake up, they will have our gifts and Santa's, too! I seriously considered getting the kids Polar Express jingle bells... I thought about it too late for this Christmas, so maybe next year.. Then again, maybe I'll leave that for Santa... :-)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
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