There's a little Lego figure standing next to my computer screen. It's a miniature depiction of Darth Maul, from Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, and he's holding a double-sided lightsaber.
Sometimes, when I'm trying to think, I'll take that lightsaber and snap it in and out of Darth Maul's outstretched little Lego hand. Everything about that snapping motion — the tactile click, the slight recoil, the instant stability — is uniquely comforting.
Kind of like a turn-based role-playing game. More »















