Hey Friends - I have a couple of shares and updates for you before the end of the year. Besides the highlights below, this past month I was dancing bachata regularly, and I was filmed for a Colombian TV show (100% in Spanish, which is a big accomplishment for me.)
š² Iām producing a board game!
Itās in collaboration with the YouTube channel Ghost Town Living, where a million+ people follow Brentās adventure of buying a California ghost town, Cerro Gordo, while he rebuilds it, preserves the history, and drops into the abandoned mines to look for artifacts.
We are working on the details, but it will be a strategy game, 20-40 minutes, for 2-5 players launch next year!
Even if you think board games arenāt your thing, and the last game you played is Monopoly, this will be designed to blow apart your perceptions of how fun games can be. Maybe youāll even be doing board game nights weekly like me now. I didnāt know that many games before a few months ago, and now Iām obsessed and look forward to cell-phone-free hang-out time with friends.
I use the word āproduceā by the way because Iām not designing the game on my own. I recognize my limits for upskilling. While Iām learning as much as I can about game mechanics, we brought in professionals to lead the collaboration so we can make something truly great!
You can follow along here and also get updates from Brent about the town.
https://tinyurl.com/ghosttownlivinggames
š² Current favorite games
I promise this newsletter wonāt be all about tabletop games going forward, but I wanted to share with you another favorite game I played last month. Itās called Carcassonne and itās a map-building game (obviously I love it). Any true gamers will sneer about how already popular this suggestion is.
Last newsletter I recommended JaipurĀ andĀ Patchwork, as fun two-player games.
In the past several Christmases, my family has played Ticket To Ride. Itās brought us together and has given us something fun to connect around.
All of these would make great holiday gifts, and all those links above are affiliate links :)
As a side note, one of my favorite aspects about being a ācreative entrepreneurā is getting to explore rich new realms. Tabletop games have delivered and more. Itās a deep and wholesome industry with the end product of creating good times for people to connect, compete, and share moments.
š Homesteading experiments
Taking a hard left turn from board games, Iāve continued on my home fermentation kick.
My kombucha production has been growing, and Iām now ready to gift out SCOBYs to my neighbors. To expand, I acquired kefir grains and Iāve been making homemade batches using goatās milk (more on that below). I had no idea about the long history behind kefir.
To the annoyance of some of my friends, Iāve been talking a little too much about said goatās milk after buying a batch at my local market. Iām lactose intolerant and it has changed my life. Itās a superior substitute to cowās milk that most lactose intolerant people can have while being tastier and healthier than plant milk.
If you see it on the shelf somewhere, give it a try. Next week Iām going to make vanilla honey ice cream with it.
ā© Upcoming
I plan to share an article upcoming about āhow to know when to move onā, or āknow when to quitā. Itās a framework for exploring new projects and knowing when to let them go. Iāll share how I decided to wind down my mindfulness brand.
Dec 30th Iāll be in Thailand for a wedding and Iām looking for a 5-7 day immersive adventure afterwards in early January. Iād like to learn something new if you have recommendations. So far Iām thinking of learning thai massage, cooking, natural building or potentially a road trip to Taiwan or the Philipines. Share your suggestions!
Thanks again for reading. I hope you found something interesting in there!
This makes me want to play board games with my family over the holidays. And I also love your reflections on the joys of being a creative entrepreneur. I can feel your excitement for learning through your words, both creatively + professionally -- which I guess are the same for you! Always look forward to reading these. Thank you for sharing :)
I am excited by the board game!