There's no place like LAN.

I hate that I am missing you guys' LAN in Chicago.  I've got WCG in Dallas that weekend. 

LAN has spoiled me. Everyone has host.  Everyone can pop curbs and flip past snipers.  Head shots are the norm.  It gives new meaning to the term Jet Lag when I get home from a LAN tourney.  I have found that I actually have to utliize BYOC or LAN facitilites prior to the competion just to get my reaction time set up for LAN.  I know two or three seconds bullet lag may not seem like much, but I run around like a n00b my first few hours on LAN after playing online.  So what if I practiced 20 hours a week with my team.  I get to the tournament and I freeze up.  It's like LAN fright or something.  I know when I am over it because I start shaking.  It must look odd.  About the third round in my legs just start going nuts and I will shake though the rest of the match, sometimes 4 maps.  Anyone else get the shakes?  And SWEAT....man, for doing something where I am sitting on my butt, I sweat like it was some sort of Tae-Bo Cardio workout!  What causes that?? 

And because I love lists, here are some of the things I about LAN:

• Brackets - The wonderfully complicated "strategery" involved with any bracket system  and watching the move forward as the matches unfold.
• Free Stuff!  Oh yeah, who can get enough lanyards and coozies?  The free stuff to be had was the BEST at buy.com LAN in Anaheim earlier this year.  I got graphics cards, mouse, lots of shirts, pens, stress balls and things that light up so you can say, "Ooooo".  Any LAN with vendors, will be a free stuff bonanza!  The WSVG LAN even had Halo 3 Limited Edition Mountain Dew Energy Drinks.  That stuff was better than BAWLS.
• Hotel Rooms - Housekeeping and Room Service.  'Nuff said.
• BYOC - okay, the BYOC area CAN suck.  It did at WSVG - but usually it is a geek playground that is open 24 hours.  No light but the blue glow from hundreds of PC's and consoles.  I love the mini tournaments as well.  More Free Stuff [see item #2]
• Water Memories - Alcohol plus Pools, Fountains, or any other source of water = major fun - but leave your electronics back in the room!  [poor Fedaykin!]
• New People, Old Friends - Nothing lifts my heart more than hearing a familiar voice come out of an unfamiliar face!  Going from online to real life it amazes me how different people look.  You get an idea in your head of how they will dress, and you may have even see an photo or five, but it still always a great surprise.  The one thing people always tell me is how animated my face is when I talk. 
• Watching Finals: Even if I don't play the game, watching a final match between teams borders on hilarity.  The WoW finals at WSVG were 15 mins of whispering and character prep for 2 mins of play time.  And the crowd loved it!  Fight Night was also awesome, they had set up the consoles in a boxing ring.  And any team bases tactic shooter [COD2PC, CS, GOW] is an amazing amount of yelling, screaming, and relflexes.  It blows my mind to see guys like vVv, N3 and MoB play.  The intensity and teamwork would blow your mind.

So that is my daily musings.  More for me, less for you - but out there all the same!