Here’s the latest news from the Weasels.
Kade’s Last Stand and Don’s Birthday Bash
For the first time since September 2012 and thanks largely to the aggressive recruiting of Prime Weasel Nate Cockerill, we fielded two boards for last week’s Dip and Drinks event at the Red Lion. Our numbers included eight regulars plus four first-time players, one who was playing for the first time in more than 40 years, and another who was playing for just the second time ever.
We put the six new and newish players — three of whom were women — on one board, along with Don Glass, who was celebrating his birthday. The other board featured some of the club’s heavyweights.
I could tell you how the boards went down, but wouldn’t it be more fun to hear from the players? Four of them have shared endgame statements at the website, and we hope to hear from more. Check out the event report.
Great Brawl of Fire
We updated the Brawl standings after last Wednesday’s action. So far we’ve played 10 games in the 2014 Bar Room Brawl Series with 30 players participating. Each player’s best three bar games count for his or her composite score. At the end of the season, the top seven players, regardless of membership status, will be invited to compete in the second annual Bar Room Brawl championship game at the Red Lion. Check out the current top seven and a link to the complete standings at the website.
Weasel Moot News
As promised, we have some Weasel Moot news to share. While we haven’t yet finalized our plans, your Sneak has been hard at work searching for a venue. We expect to wrap up our search and sign a contract by Feb. 21. For now I can share that our preferred dates for the event are July 26-27 and that we are considering four venues: one in Evanston, two in downtown Chicago just off the Magnificent Mile, and last year’s venue in Willowbrook (now called the Willowbrook Inn). We should have an announcement for you in the Feb. 24 edition of the Weekly Weasel. For now, pencil in those dates on your calendars.
In addition, we’re planning to bid on the 2015 North American Diplomacy Championship (DipCon). Once we finalize the 2014 Moot, we’ll immediately turn out attention to DipCon.
March Madness Beckons
We’ve scheduled five great opportunities to play Dip in March as we renew our annual campaign to restore the month to its original pastime. One of the games even falls on the date of history’s most infamous backstab. We must fill that one. The schedule features a game each weekend, with two opportunities in Chicago, as well as suburban games in Itasca, Des Plaines and Glenview.
The fun starts Sunday, March 2, at John Gramila’s home in Humboldt Park. Now all we need are some players. Check out the schedule, consult your calendars, and sign up. These are great opportunities to tune up for CODCon.
CODCon is Coming…
Our eighth annual CODCon Open Diplomacy tournament is early this year. The three-round tournament will be April 5-6, 2014, at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn. It’s not necessary to play in all three rounds–although we hope you will–and it only takes one round to qualify for awards, of which there will be plenty: plaques for first through third place and best play of each country, prizes for fourth through seventh, and maybe some special awards.
The Open is the Chicago area’s longest-running Diplomacy tournament. It’s a fun event with great people watching. I hope you’ll join us this year.
You can find more information about our tournament, including the schedule, here. Learn more about the CODCon convention here. When you decide to come, be sure to respond on Meetup here.
Upcoming Games
- Feb. 19 at the Red Lion in Lincoln Square, starting at 6:30 p.m. until no later than 11. Have eight. After reading about how much fun we had at last week’s two-board session, surely you’ll want to join us.
- March 2 at John Gramila’s home in Humboldt Park, starting at 11 a.m. Have 1 for this Sunday game.
- March 8 at the Concentric game convention in Itasca, starting at 11 a.m. Have 2.
- March 15 at Tony Prokes’ home in Des Plaines, starting at 11 a.m. Beware! Have 2.
- March 22 at Peter Lokken’s home in Logan Square, starting at 11 a.m. Have 3.
- March 29 at Matt Sundstrom’s home in Glenview, starting at 11 a.m. Have 2.
Sign up for games at the website (http://windycityweasels.org/current-games-signup), on Meetup (http://www.meetup.com/wcwdiplomacy/), or by emailing your faithful War Weasel (which is now Dan Burgess, danburgess67 [at] gmail [dot] com).
Important Dates
- March 2: Our seventh annual March Madness campaign tips off in Humboldt Park.
- April 5-6: The eighth annual CODCon Open Diplomacy tournament at the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn.
- July 26-27: The tentative dates for Weasel Moot VIII.
Dues
Eventually we’ll get around to mailing our annual e-appeal for 2014 dues. In the meantime, feel free to use the PayPal link we set up for 2013 to pay your 2014 dues. We’re still charging $25, $10 if you’re a student. Fourteen people have paid up already, including the mysterious Chris Cantine. Thanks, Chris! Remember, your dues pay for our website, the Meetup site, our annual club awards, and the awards for both the Royale and the Brawl, among other things.
That’s all for this week.
Jim
