Republican Contest in New Hampshire

 I thought that the republican primary contest in New Hampshire was very interesting.  It has been the first real test for the nominees in terms of their overall popularity with the people.  A lot of people were wondering if the majority of New Hampshire voters would break for Hailey over Trump based on the political makeup of the state.  Given that, in New Hampshire, it is estimated that 40% of the voting population are registered as independent voters.  There is also the fact that New Hampshire has an open primary where anyone can vote in any primary contest for the presidential candidacy of any political party.  This could have very well affected the outcome of the New Hampshire primaries.  Odds are that there were significant numbers of democrats in the primary polls who voted for Nikki Hailey in an effort to damage Trump's chances at the presidency.  Regardless of this fact, Trump still won the primaries overall by a relatively large margin. 

This likely means that a large portion of the "independent" voters, chose to vote for Trump in the republican primaries, suggesting that many of the independents are unhappy with the current democratic constituency - including Joe Biden and his governing policies and practices.  Although, New Hampshire is just a small portion of the American voting population, it is a relatively good indicator of how many of the independents may be feeling overall about the democratic party as a whole. 

If this does end up being the case, then I would tend to believe that it is a good indicator of his chances of becoming the republican nominee and beating Joe Biden in the next presidential elections.  As of right now, the republican primary is still active.  Something could still feasibly happen to upset Trump's current lead over Hailey.  However, after carefully looking at several sources across the web, I really think that this won't happen.  All things seem to point to another race between Trump and Biden.  

I do not necessarily like the concept of a rematch between the two presidents, but that is where we are headed as of today. Therefore, the country will be faced with a critical choice.  To continue with how things are and have been over the past 4 years, or to return to how things have been during Trump's presidency.  This makes the decision rather simple in my opinion, considering that for both candidates, we can simply look at their past actions as president and make the appropriate decision for what we want for the future.  As things stand, I choose Trump over Biden, and would so any day of the week.

Rivals For Catan: 2 player edition card game review

 A board game series that my family and I have enjoyed playing has been the Catan series.  Settlers of Catan is a game where you earn points by settling hexagonal areas of the board in an effort to garner recourses before the other players. Doing this, in addition to settling, allows you to expand your territory and therefore further increase you available resources, and earning you some points.  Each player starts with 2 settlements that they automatically get to place in any area of the board that they choose.  

Rivals for Catan is a simple two player variant of the board game Settlers of Catan.  Here, instead of a board and tiles, the players are provided with cards that make up the entirety of the recourses and areas that are represented in the base game.  Each card has a number that is assigned to it for the purpose of recourse allocation.  As each card is played, it either produces a recourse, or creates a building that supplies specific benefits to certain recourses.  You win the game by earning points, by creating as many cities and towns as you can - similarly to Settlers of Catan.  

One thing that I really liked about the game was that they provided a small barrier to help distinguish which cards belonged to which players.  Overall this two player variant is very well done, comparable to the base game.  As for accessibility, this game is very good for those who struggle with dyslexia because rather than words, the cards are all simply symbols and images.  However,  if you struggle to remember rules that can be and issue.  Something that didn't help though, was just that, the rules are relatively complex in that there are several different cards with different rulings, making it so that to understand how each of them interacts with the game would take a lot of rote memorization.  Something that I struggle with is fine motor skills, and with this game it was sometimes challenging to lace the cards in the correct orientation.  Something I've done to get around such obstacles is to have a family member or friend sit next to me.  That way if I have an issue I can ask them to adjust the positioning of the cards.

Overall, this game tends to be more difficult than the base game, but only when it comes to those with physical or mental handicaps.  The game is still extremely fun to play, whether it is in a family setting or a more competitive setting amongst friends.  If it were more accessible overall, I would also recommend it for people like me who have disabilities.  If anyone struggles greatly with dyslexia and fine motor skills , I would recommend the base game over this one.  However, it you are able to work around that - or if its not even an issue for you then this is quite an excellent game!  Its pretty cheap too, costing only about 20$ on amazon to purchase, which I highly recommend. 

Current state of the Republican presidential primaries.

 The first and largest change that's happened since our last discussion on the republican primaries, has been Chris Christie dropping out of the race.  The debate hosted by CNN consisted only of Nikki Hailey and Ron DeSantis, since Vivek Ramaswami did not have enough public support in the state of Iowa.  As for Donald Trump, he declined to take part in the debate at all.  According to him, why would he allow the other two candidates to slander him when he's so far ahead of them in terms of polling. 

I did not watch the entire debate myself, as I saw very little point in completing the whole broadcast.  I do not see either Nikki or DeSantis as having a chance at winning the presidential nomination.  Even if they did have a chance, I still wouldn't want to support them since I disagree with most of their policies in addition to their personal character flaws.  As far as Trump himself, he had a town hall sort of event in Iowa that was hosted by FOX news, where the moderators asked Trump a series of questions related to policy and his political stances.  Many of those questions came from members of the audience.  I have to say that I did not watch this event at all, but I can assume that such meetings were similar to the previous ones that Trump has held.  

As things stand right now, my personal thoughts are that if Trump remains unconvicted of any crimes, I will probably support him hesitantly - as Trump is better than any of the other proffered choices in my opinion.  I know that there are many people in the country who don't like trump for a myriad of different reasons, many of which I acknowledge.  Given the fact, that Trump was able to improve the general economy, national security and foreign relations amidst all of the political and social resistance, I think that he can do it again for the benefit of the nation.  Regardless I detest his brusque personality

Sushi Go! card game review

 Sushi Go! is a fun little card game, it can accommodate up to 5 people.  The point of the game is simple.  There are different types of sushi, each of which has some sort of point value that is scored slightly differently - depending on the color of the card and type of sushi that is represented.  At the bottom of each card. there is a cheat reminder that outlines how many points a card is worth, and how that specific card may interact with others. 

I like this game, because once you have a grasp on what each card does, there is no other reading involved.  The game is just a bunch of pictures, making it much more accessible for someone with severe or even moderate dyslexia.  The game also scales well depending on the number of players, going all the way down to 2 player games.  The rules don't really change depending on the number of players, save for the number of cards available in the starting hand.  This is another good caveat of the game, because there is no need to memorize or learn separate rules because you have less or more people than last time.  

The game is also really simple.  This enables anyone to play, even someone as young as 6 years old.  They would just have to be able to recognize the numbers on the card, and understand the basic point system.  With adults, the game can still be fun due to its fast paced nature.  In my personal experience, this is a really hard balance to strike, allowing accessibility to many more people than other more traditional games.  

This game can be especially fun if you love sushi.  My family and I probably mispronounce all of the names of the various different types of sushi, due to the fact that we hardly ever eat it.  For the sushi enthusiasts, however, they may get "hangry".  The game itself is split into three rounds.  At the end of the three rounds all of the points are added up, and the person with the most over the course of the game wins! Lastly, this game is very quick and simple to set up and play.  

Making Time For Your Passions

 Many people think motivation entails thoughts like "just do it" or "fight through the pain" or "It'll get better later".  Although this can be true, motivation is not only comprised of grit.  Motivation is supported by many other character qualities such as time management and personal interest or investment.  I don't mean this in terms of just work or academics, but rather as a way to look at life overall.  The best motivator is to focus on the things that bring us true joy, not just pleasure.  

One of the things in my life that bring me joy, is research concerning current and modern political events in the United States and abroad.  For many people, this would be one of the last things that they would do just for kicks - I can be a little bit odd in that regard.  Politics is just on of the things in which I can find joy in researching.  I am not suggesting that everybody do something like research as a method of finding true joy.  What I mean is this:  Doing things that are uplifting and educational are things that are most likely to provide you with a sense of purpose, meaning, and joy - even if these things may be "nerdy" or "weird", they don't need to be some sort of "guilty pleasure".  You can just allow the things that bring you peace and joy to become a part of who you are, and then use them to motivate yourself to do the things that need to be done, especially if times are hard.  

This concept can most especially be applied to the small things such as exercise, or doing the dishes.  The simple joys in your life don't have to only be associated with your "free time" either.  They can be integrated into your daily life through careful planning, allowing you the energy and motivation to do whatever unsavory tasks that may be left over.   I would encourage all who are reading this today to focus on what they love, and use them as a method of generating the motivation necessary to complete the daily, mundane tasks of life, as well as things that may be more difficult than normal. 

Here is a personal example.  Even though I am 30 years old, I still enjoy Legos.  I simply use them as a motivator, allowing me to get the unpleasant tasks done.  If I am successful, I get to purchase or spend time with my Lego hobby.  This tactic has been extremely successful in helping me push through the doldrums of life, and I encourage all of you to do the same.  Remember, do all that you can to reach anyways. 

Primary Presidential Elections Update

 As an update to the current events, the current state of the republican nomination process, as of 01/05/2024.  There are still many legal proceedings being pushed against the current republican front runner, Donald Trump.  Very little has changed since my last blog post in regards to former president Trump's legal debacles, with the only change being that his legal team has officially petitioned the Supreme court to review the decisions in Colorado and Maine where they states took him off of the presidential ballots due to his alleged involvement in the January 6th "insurrection".  We are currently awaiting the decision of the Supreme Court and this request.  If they take up the case, it will make a significant impact in regards to the powers that states hold over the presidential electoral ballot.  

I personally believe that the Supreme Court has an obligation to take up the case in order to resolve the issue so that should future situations like this occur again, there will be a precedent for it to draw from.  Either way, it can't be a very comfortable case for the Supreme Court to take, since we are in relatively uncharted territory.  It is likely that whatever happens, anger will be expressed by one side or the other of the political spectrum, regardless of what the ruling turns out to be.  If the Supreme Court refuses to take it on, it can potentially set a precedent for states to bar political opponents from the ballet.  An example would be that the state of Idaho could potentially bar democratic nominees from the ballot over alleged accusations.  This is why that it is fundamental for the Supreme Court to rule on this issue.  

Other matters relating to the current presidential contest, I previously expressed support for Nikki Hailey, but since her ignorant comments about the origins of the Civil War,  I no longer support her in the least.  As of now, I don't know who I'm rooting for, but any politician who cannot answer a basic United States history question, then you have no business occupying an office in government, let alone the most powerful executive office of the entire United States government.  I was extremely disappointed at Nikki Hailey's obvious ignorance concerning such important political history.  As far as the other candidates go I still do not support any of the others - especially Ramaswami and DeSantis.  In short, this year we don't really have good presidential options on either the republican or democratic side, making it hard to make any decision at all.  I guess the only solution is to wait and see.  

Splendor: Digital version review

 Today's review will be on the electronic version of the classic board game called "Splendor".  In some ways the digital version is even better.  For someone like me, who has sever dyslexia and spatial awareness difficulties,  the digital version helps me by highlighting the various cards which I am able to enact upon each turn - decreasing the need to be fully aware of each piece on the board at any given moment.  The game also automatically gives you the jewels you selects, and puts them back whenever you buy something.  This makes it so that I don't accidentally knock anything over due to my poor spatial awareness and poor vision.  Although my issues with dyscalculia aren't nearly as pronounced as my issues with dyslexia, they are still present and this key mechanic in the digital version of splendor helps to alleviate those issues. 

In addition, a pretty obvious advantage to the digital version of splendor is that you can play against computer AI as a way of honing your skills and capabilities for the game mechanics.  It also helps whenever you don't have a person to play with on particularly boring days.  The computer AI have 3 settings that simulate different play styles, providing more diversity when playing alone.  there is also the option to play with other people both online, and in a pass n' play format where each player takes turns using the same mouse and screen on their respective turns.  

Mostly, I play in person with family and friends, and I've discovered that the digital version of Splendor helps me to utilize better strategies overall.  Either way, the mechanics of the game are the same.  There are even the options of purchasing the various expansions through steam and then using those.  I haven't played any of the expansions recently, but as soon as I do I will post an additional Splendor review.  

New Year's Follow up

 As this new year has now gotten underway, I have had many reflections on what I should have as my new year's resolution.  Then I thought "what does a new years resolution even mean?".  Is it the stereotypical "well, I'm going to exercise and eat better" or "well, I'm going to be better at relationships this year"?  The answer I came up with personally is that all of those stereotypical goals may not be bad in and of themselves, but they are not what I need to focus on for my own personal progress.  Therefore, I recommend to any people who may be struggling with deciding a new years resolution to take a look at where they are in in their lives overall and decide what the most pressing issues are - then make a new years resolution to resolve such issues within a certain time limit.  This can apply to issues that are immediate, as well as issues that may rear their heads in the years to come.  One must decide, whether or not the stereotypical resolutions are actual pressing problems in their lives, and if it truly is, fix their minds with a determined resolution to resolve said problems within a specific time frame.  

As a personal example, and as a person with cerebral palsy, exercise vital to my physical and mental wellbeing more than the average person.  If I don't focus on these things, I pay an extremely higher day to day cost such as a dramatic increase in fatigue, joint stiffness, as well as a dramatic decrease in overall flexibility and motivation.  Exercise directly contributes to the state of my mental well being as well in the extreme.  As such, I need to have several long term and short term goals.  Now, this may not work for anybody, but for somebody whos happiness and wellbeing depends so heavily on something as simple as walking - these kinds of goals work wonderfully. 

The goals that I make do not all have to be related to exercise, but also to certain hobbies, aspirations, and interests such as my penchant for collecting board games or my love of technology.  If these goals are interconnected with one another, I am much much much more likely to achieve greater results than if I had focused on a singular solitary goal.  I don't know if this is the case for everybody, but regardless you should take a look at where you are and what you want to achieve and what you have control over, and then focus on those things until your resolution is fulfilled.  

Although the things that you don't have control over may be distracting or even downright painful, the don't have to define who you are as a person nor what you do in any situation.  I wish anyone and everyone to have good fortune in their own respective journeys, not just for this year, but every year.  Whatever your situation may be, remember to reach anyways.