Things I didn’t need to experience today:

* Watching a white haired old man ask a portly Latino prostitute with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth, “What can I get for $10?” They walked away together so I assume it was going to get him something, though I really would have thought inflation would have made the $10 hooker a thing of the past.

* My third trip to the supposed New York style deli in which they did not have any matzoh ball soup. Listen up, chuckleheads, if you don’t have matzoh ball soup, you are NOT a New York style deli. Period. Either make an effort to have it or take it off the damn menu and admit you’re a Seattle deli.

* A field trip of 10 year olds swarming the bus and surrounding me with their yelling, jostling, posturing, and fighting. It was at least funny watching one of them tell the mopey goth guy with many piercings, “Your earrings are tight!”

On the upside, I’m making good progress on the book of Tolkien’s letters. Since each letter is fairly short, it makes good reading for the bus. Even if I’m just on for a few stops, I can read a letter or two and each one is complete.

When I was 13 years old, I read some very exciting news in Dragon Magazine: there was going to be a D&D; cartoon. I had started playing D&D; when I was 10, so the fact that my new hobby was going to be on TV was damn cool. I eagerly awaited the show’s debut. And then…it totally sucked ass. It sucked ass in ways that asses had never even thought of. A little boy with a club who was supposed to be a barbarian? A paladin with a shield but no sword? Uni the frickin’ unicorn?! Truly a dreadful show and I was surely not sad when they finally cancelled it.

This week I opened up the new issue of Game Trade and there was an ad for a DVD set of the D&D; cartoon. I shuddered. Then I read the sales text and discovered that it comes with a 32 page hardback Animated Show Handbook for D&D; 3.5. It stats up the characters and their items and yes, even Uni the frickin’ unicorn. Oh yes, this is exactly what I’ve been waiting for. I suppose it is something new for 3.5. I don’t think they’ve ever statted up retarded children before.