“Life is more fun if you play games.”
Rain is predicted for today. The sun was straight out earlier but now just comes and goes. Today is warm, already in the high 50’s. The prediction is for 62°. When it is that warm, I almost want to run in the rain the way I used to when I was a kid.
When I was growing up, we always played board games. Every Christmas a new game was one of our presents. I remember Chutes and Ladders. I also remember the long slide we all wanted to avoid. We played Go to the Head of the Class with our parents. My brother was always Cowboy Joe. I still have our old game. Sorry was and is our all time favorite. My friends and I even played it the other night.
My parents taught my brother and me to play whist. It was the girls against the boys. The girls usually won. Even when we were older, we played cards around the kitchen table. Every time I visited, my father and I played cribbage. All of us played High-Low Jack or Pitch as it is also known. I remember one game when we were playing with partners, I don’t remember my father’s hapless partner. I do remember whoever it was trumped my father’s ace. My father went crazy. Somehow he hurt his back and fell off the bench to the kitchen floor. There he was lying there on his back still complaining about his partner. We just watched.
When we traveled, my parents and I, we always brought cards and a cribbage board. After dinner, my father and I would play a few games. My mother always packed whiskey so they’d have a couple of drinks. She usually did crossword puzzles while we played. I loved those evenings being with my parents enjoying each other’s company.
We, Bill, Peg and I, played games at night in Ghana. We had no radio and no TV so games were our diversions. I’ve mentioned the alphabet game before, but I’ll give a recap. The alphabet is put on paper top to bottom, A to Z. Beside each alphabet letter another letter is put, usually from a random sentence in a book. The game was to come up with names which matched the two letters like AL for Abraham Lincoln. Bill claimed the names he found were football players. Peg and I never believed him so we’d vote on whether or not to accept his answer. Bill always lost 2-1.
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May 2, 2023 at 1:40 pm
They were all real football players. You just didn’t know them.
May 2, 2023 at 1:50 pm
Bill,
Peg and I would like to vote on that!
May 2, 2023 at 6:02 pm
Hi Kat,
You’re getting the rain we need to make it through the long hot summer. We will be in the low 90s by the end of this week. Hopefully, the humidity will increase and bring some more rain. By the end of May, we will start swimming in the backyard pool.
My family were not game players. My parents never played cards with friends nor with us. My sister and I had all of the games and we played them together. She always accused me of cheating. I probably did cheat just to win.
Today, I took off early to get my car’s oil changed. Living within five miles of work, I actually reached the one year recommended maximum time to change the oil. The maintenance minder still said I had 50% oil life left. It doesn’t have a calendar. And, oil changes are cheaper than car payments. 🙂
May 2, 2023 at 9:10 pm
Hi Bob,
Rain is also predicted for tomorrow but only showers. It is a bit chilly, low 50’s. The last thing I want is humidity.
We all played games. My siblings with children passed along their love for games to their kids. Many Friday nights were card nights at my parents. My uncle always came up to the house. They sat at the kitchen table having a few drinks and playing cards. They were fun nights.
We didn’t cheat at games. It just wasn’t done. My aunt the nun accused my sister of cheating. My sister verbally let her have it.
Taking good care of our cars lets them live long lives!