Happy American Thanksgiving!

I’m Canadian, and we do Thanksgiving in October for some reason that I’m too lazy just now to investigate. But I did want to take a moment to wish our American Mazecasters and friends a very happy American Thanksgiving, and to share what may become a new Thanksgiving tradition in my family: Maze dioramas!

Here’s the thing: hanging around with relatives can get boring. Why not spice it up with a challenge? You choose a room in Maze and try to recreate it (or part of it) with actual things. This year for Canadian Thanksgiving we were up in cottage country (in other words, staying in a cabin by a lake in a forest) and there seemed to be a number of Room 4-ish things lying around. Here are the results of my first Maze diorama attempts:

Room 4 simulation Room 4 simulation

(I may have given the impression that this was a jolly activity involving the whole family. Actually I waited until everyone was in a turkey coma and snuck outside to do this by myself. I don’t need to give my loved ones any further fodder for mockery or having me committed.)

On a more serious note. Even though this is not my holiday, with recent events in the real world it is not hard for me to find reasons to feel thankful. It would be easy to go on and on but I will try to keep this brief and relevant: I’m thankful for the friends and fun I’ve found through Mazecast and Into the Abyss. I’m thankful for the great gift of security and free time in which to obsess over the Guide Puzzle instead of spending every moment fearing for my family’s safety and worrying about where we are going to sleep or find food to eat. I’m thankful that the only real brush I’ve had with terrorism was the one-day hack by “Islamic State” sympathizers of Mazecast’s home page. I’m thankful for Paris and its enduring spirit. And I’m thankful for the brave, beautiful humans around the world striving for peace and harmony among all people.