BajaNomad - Baja Board Game

Baja Board Game

Osprey - 5-15-2015 at 08:31 AM

Baja Board Game

An old pal of mine from Loreto, Bud Callen, dropped in unexpectedly and surprised me with his idea of a new Baja chat board. He’s been a Baja Nomad member for many years and he knows a lot about blogs, boards, and communications.

He laid out his plans for a new board called Baja Buddies. He told me he plans to charge $50 per month for use/subscription. Since I had been a member of the free Baja Nomad board for many years I told him he might have a hard time getting new members. He had some answers for me about that I didn’t see coming.

Bud looked for the day when the owners of Baja Nomad might give up or sell out and then, he would be ready to lure the traffic to his new site and maybe get some new ones.

“Jorge, after watching the traffic on Nomad for the last couple of years I’m convinced that there are thousands who would pay the $50 bucks if Nomad went away. Here’s my thinking on the matter. The hard core who would move have no choice. They need to have an outlet --- there are literally a couple of thousand who would pay any reasonable amount to have a continued avenue to vent their particular spleens.

Let me explain who they are not: they are not people who fish the Sea of Cortez or the Pacific Ocean. They have never surfed or clammed or crabbed. They don’t know a thing about Baja California or Baja Sur. They do not wind surf or kite board. They do not own a home or a business in Baja. Yet they post on the Nomad board several times a day, week, month from their keyboards in Seattle, Yuma and Boise.

They are in company with people who live in Tijuana and have never left the border. They are people who last fished the waters of the Gulf of California in 1989. They are people who drove to Cabo in the 90s, got drunk and now crowd the board with their rants about how things have changed for the worst.

There are thousands of oldsters who loved the Baja when they were young, strong, robust – those who can’t let the memories go. Many have never been back between youth and old age but relive the past through the board every day. Scores or hundreds more are now mired in the place and can’t get out – too old and broke to move, get to a newer, softer place to die. They haunt the board like grouchy old sea ghosts.

All the others, the young pioneers and the culture friendly baby boomers, the salt water athletes will pay because they are Mexico’s last hope. They will only be happy when they are giving – they can certainly do that with or without a chat board but it makes it a whole lot more worthwhile if and when they can share their charity, their joy of giving, with likeminded people.

There are those who would pay hundreds, if not thousands; some poor souls who need extra love and affection, recognition. You can tell them by their post count, the thousands of pictures, the non-Baja stories and travelogues, the virtual catalogs of their lives in real time, then last week, last year, when they were 20, 12.

Some feature themselves as writers, poets, philosophers and who knows what other internet groups would accept their sometimes artless stories, sonnets or outcries.

So, Jorge, what do you think?”

“I think I’ll go in the bodega and see if we have another bottle of Tequila. I know I got a tree full of limes and time to do some serious mullin’ over what you have come up with. Did you just race down here to lay this on me before you forgot it?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

shari - 5-15-2015 at 10:59 AM

sporting true Nomad highjack musings...at the sight of the title of the thread, my creative neurons began firing away like crazy with ideas for a Baja Monopoly board...one could have a heyday creating properties and their worth...get out of jail free mordidas, fishing outfits in lieu of railroads...just think of the possibilities amigos!

Osprey - 5-15-2015 at 11:09 AM

Shari, over the last couple days, posts that appear on Today's Posts had a total of about 51,000 viewers from the time of the original post. Only 900 replies or comments showed up --- that's about an average over weeks, months. So if you take 9,000 plus viewers/members that's a whole lot of people who have nothing to say, nothing to add, just want information and sidewalk drama.

Make of that what you will but that's not a forum, that's a newspaper. I was just trying (with all my might) to convince people to say what, if anything they feel about A WHOLE HOST OF INFORMATIVE THINGS ABOUT THIS UNIQUE PLACE.

They are welcome, of course, but there must be some things on here that light a spark somewhere down deep that would bring them to become active, join the club, get the feeling, get involved, add their thoughts to a big white wonderfully forgiving blank board.

[Edited on 5-15-2015 by Osprey]

shari - 5-15-2015 at 11:43 AM

Hmmm...very thought provoking indeed...as are many of your stories!

I am fascinated how many..many of us on this board have become close friends and sort of family in a way. I feel connected on different levels with different contributors here and enjoy communicating with a comment now and again...to keep in touch or perhaps add something useful...or amusing.

I love nearly spitting coffee on the keyboard, laughing out loud or crying over the enormous variety of posts here. Sure it is useful with all the up to date info on the peninsula, but it is the comradely,personal fun we have that makes it a special place to hang out...the virtual sand box or corner bar. Yep, the bar always has the quiet ones, the introverts, extroverts, mr.friggin know it alls, the jokers, the salesmen, the arguers, the drunks, etc etc...but we all enjoy having a virtual drink together at the bar now and again...

So I will take this moment to say thanks to the amigos who share their knowledge, thoughts and just plain friendship here...and to all you lurkers...jump in once a awhile and share dudes! I know you are listening and want to sometimes.

Now about that board game?

vandenberg - 5-15-2015 at 11:48 AM

Jorge. not all folks are gifted wordsmiths like you, while many have problems to even put small mundane thoughts into understandable script.
But...sign me up. :biggrin:

Potential first post

AKgringo - 5-15-2015 at 03:14 PM

FIFTY DOLLARS?.......THAT'S TOO MUCH!
What can I get for $4.95? (honestly, I'm probably too cheap to even pay that)

sancho - 5-15-2015 at 03:51 PM

I do get a kick out of Baja travellers who proudly quote how
many times, years, how far down, they have been driving
the Peninsula. I have a place there, you don't, probably a
result of some taxpayer funded, bloated unearned retirement, as if they get a feather in their cap for that, real blowhards. Proudly qouting how many times they have been
down Hwy 1,as compared to some who do not have the time, etc., giving themselve a seat at the head of the table.
Looking down their noses at travellers who have not logged
the time
in Baja that they themselves proudly wear for everyone to see.
One can always find folks that do not have the history or time
SOB as oneself may have, but their are always others that have
logged a lot more time in Baja. They probably don't brag about it, nor
look down on Baja travellers that don't

David K - 5-15-2015 at 06:25 PM

There are also some who could help their fellow Nomads with information, advice, answer questions about places, BUT DO NOT lift a finger to provide a thing of assistance.

Baja Nomad is here to provide that travel info for others....

So, we have givers and we have takers, on Nomad. Let's hope that the takers do not succeed in pushing away any more givers. Sadly, they are trying their best to do just that.

mtgoat666 - 5-15-2015 at 06:42 PM

Nomadlandia could use an online game like Mortal Combat X, where argumentative nomads could go to exercise their demons by hunting and shooting each other :light:

BajaBlanca - 5-15-2015 at 08:20 PM

good story and I too was envisioning board games and what might be entailed!

I thoroughly enjoy this board .... mostly when people take the time to write about their travel experiences or life experiences here southland.

and I love the surprises that Jorge comes up with.

bajaguy - 5-15-2015 at 08:24 PM

Fish taco stands.......and don't forget PEMEX stations

Quote: Originally posted by shari

sporting true Nomad highjack musings...at the sight of the title of the thread, my creative neurons began firing away like crazy with ideas for a Baja Monopoly board...one could have a heyday creating properties and their worth...get out of jail free mordidas, fishing outfits in lieu of railroads...just think of the possibilities amigos!