What a cool thread!  You are one of my game friends, and I always wondered where the name Brad the Impala came from!  Mine is boring, just a shortening of my first D&D character, a druid named Laurelindien. 

Katie, what a lovely story for your name!

Stephanie (laurelind)

I had a great D&D character, I miss our old RPG games (and the gang).  I didn't really have anything specific in mind when I started, I was just looking for a female figurine who wasn't 30% boobs.  Hard to find.  I finally found a normal-breasted one and she was carrying a staff with a dragon head on it.  I filed down the dragon and made it look like a duck, one of my favorite animals.  Then I named my character "Echo."  (Supposedly a duck's quack doesn't echo.  I have no idea if this is true.)  She was a Bard who had a knack for haggling, getting strangers to tell their secrets, and enlisting anyone around her to come to her defense.  My favorite spell was "History of Blood," which would reactivate any and all old injuries (broken bones, knife wounds, punctured lung, etc.) her opponent had ever sustained.  Ahhhh, geekdom...

btw, I love Captain America.

Happy gaming!

My nickname - LvlSlgr - here's the story.

Years ago I moved from KY to VA. The personalized license plates for your car were only $10 extra and I wanted one and wanted it to show I was from KY. I finally came up with LVL SLGR ... because I'm from Louisville, home of the Louisville Slugger bats.

That was back in 1995 and ever since then I've use LvlSlgr as my email address, my name when needed in a website, whatever.

BTW ... in 2008 I moved back to KY. Unfortunately KY personalized license plates are limited to 6 digits/letters and LVL SLG just didn't work for me. Louisville Slug?? So I just went with the standard license plate.

That's a great license plate!  I guess "slug" only works if you went to UC Santa Cruz (home of the fightin' Banana Slugs).

Brad the Impala (OtterQueen) said:

(home of the fightin' Banana Slugs).

OMG ... that's so funny I had to go look it up. Really ... where do they come up with these nicknames for the schools? That certainly wouldn't inspire me to do well in sporting competitions. And I thought the University of Oregon Ducks was bad.

Thanks for making me chuckle.

Well, there are a lot of banana slugs in the redwood forests of the coastal range.  There's a candy store in Santa Cruz that makes life-size banana slug chocolates in assorted colors and flavors.  They're actually pretty tasty!

https://mackenzieschocolates.com/product/105042-banana-slug-box/

Many already know my story, but I'll add it here.  When my husband died unexpectedly, I was in a terrible state.  I'd never in my whole life mowed the lawn.  Or, God forbid, used a weed whacker.  Now it was up to me to learn how.  So I got out the owner's manual and tried and tried to figure the darn thing out.  Mixed the oil and gas, added string, started it up and thought I had it all figured out.  But the darn thing was so heavy and kept stalling.  I sat down on the ground, with the owner's manual in my hands, crying my eyes out while trying to follow the steps to start the darn thing.  Set this here, put the choke there, whatever it said.  As I gave in to my grief and some serious self-pity, I began noticing a white butterfly flying all around me.  After a while, it became obvious it just wasn't a coincidence.  I believed it was my husband trying his best to assure me everything would be alright and to get up and get the job done.  It's been years, but I kid you not, every single time I'm out mowing, a white butterfly dances around me.

Once, my son was helping.  I took a break and was sitting on the step while he took over.  He didn't see it, or know it was happening, but while he was working a white butterfly kept circling his head.  It was wonderful and sad, all at the same time.

Now, as far as the dopey redbutter I've saddled myself with...what can I say but that was a pure moment of sheer stupidity.  It's a long story, but I hated it then and I hate it now.  There are definitely days I feel like the Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz...if I only had a brain!  LOL

I still get teary every time I read your story, red/white.. So sweet.

Beautiful, how the souls of those we love, work their magic. Thank you for sharing that with us.

Tracy