Goodbye
March 10th 2008 01:40
They say its funny how life works out and sometimes its sad.
Last post I talked about Roleplaying games a hobby that I have participated in since 1987. Last year was the 20th Anniversary of my participation in a hobby that has given me untold hours of joy and been a platform for my creative imagination.
Then on the 5th of March at 10.20am I discovered that Gary Gygax died.
This was a sad day for me.
Eight years ago I did what a lot of people do when you have internet access. I started to email those writers and creative people that wrote the words that I enjoyed so much. Then one day while I was reading Dragon Magazine I read an article by Gary Gygax on the creation of one of the game worlds. Inspired by this article I found his email address and dropped him a line.
I must have emailed 10 different writers. Gary was the only one that I had the chance to correspond with.
He was such a generous and giving person, always polite and encouraging, to a complete stranger.
I lost contact with Gary and didn't email him again till 2005. My son had just been born and I wanted to share the good news. I discovered that he was recovering from a stroke that he suffered in 2004. But he was gracious enough to congratulate me on the birth of my son and apologize that he could no longer email me.
So on the 4th of March I lost a friend. Who happened to co - create a hobby that has touched thousands of people world wide.
The game he invented is the reason why I can read and why I am writing my first novel. I say this not as a general event. But a direct cause and effect. Before I played Dungeons and Dragons I could barely read. After I discovered the game I learned to read so that I could experience more fantasy adventures and understand rulebooks.
But I feel the loss mostly because he was a friend.
I have mentioned in this blog before that I am writing a novel. I finished the first draft in 06 and am working on the second. I intend to dedicate that book to Gary. Simply because he deserves to get the credit.
So with a heavy heart I bid farewell to a good man. Someone I will miss.
I am going to close out my blog in the same way I would finish every email I ever sent to Gary.
Cheers from Karl
Last post I talked about Roleplaying games a hobby that I have participated in since 1987. Last year was the 20th Anniversary of my participation in a hobby that has given me untold hours of joy and been a platform for my creative imagination.
Then on the 5th of March at 10.20am I discovered that Gary Gygax died.
This was a sad day for me.
Eight years ago I did what a lot of people do when you have internet access. I started to email those writers and creative people that wrote the words that I enjoyed so much. Then one day while I was reading Dragon Magazine I read an article by Gary Gygax on the creation of one of the game worlds. Inspired by this article I found his email address and dropped him a line.
I must have emailed 10 different writers. Gary was the only one that I had the chance to correspond with.
He was such a generous and giving person, always polite and encouraging, to a complete stranger.
I lost contact with Gary and didn't email him again till 2005. My son had just been born and I wanted to share the good news. I discovered that he was recovering from a stroke that he suffered in 2004. But he was gracious enough to congratulate me on the birth of my son and apologize that he could no longer email me.
So on the 4th of March I lost a friend. Who happened to co - create a hobby that has touched thousands of people world wide.
The game he invented is the reason why I can read and why I am writing my first novel. I say this not as a general event. But a direct cause and effect. Before I played Dungeons and Dragons I could barely read. After I discovered the game I learned to read so that I could experience more fantasy adventures and understand rulebooks.
But I feel the loss mostly because he was a friend.
I have mentioned in this blog before that I am writing a novel. I finished the first draft in 06 and am working on the second. I intend to dedicate that book to Gary. Simply because he deserves to get the credit.
So with a heavy heart I bid farewell to a good man. Someone I will miss.
I am going to close out my blog in the same way I would finish every email I ever sent to Gary.
Cheers from Karl
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