Unless you can drop a couple phases between Cary, North Carolina and San Diego, California, I'd say we're pretty far apart. Too bad too, we've got a nice group of Magic players out here, me and my friends, and its always good to have more people join in the fun.
And I agree with you about Mirrodin, the new Equipment mechanic has added a very cool aspect to the game, and Darksteel's equipment, along with other new artifacts, certainly won't disappoint.