The Champion

... a pause for a pizza, then a good game ...

 This is the spot at the table where Rebecca and I play a lot of the game called Azzul: Summer Pavilion.

we can get Duncan to play with us a bit, maybe 1 out of 20 times. Each time we add him to the mix, he is the winner in the game.

It doesn't matter if he sits ahead of Rebecca, or behind Rebecca, so this is not about who goes first, second or third.

Duncan has the ability to play his own board and our boards at the same time. Rebecca can do that a bit. I can only keep my eyes on one board, mine and even then I sometimes ask for extra points, or alternately, not enough point. That might be why I am sometimes as much as 40 points behind them.

I don't know what it is that provides the electricity between us when we play. There's not too much said. I probably watch their faces. They’re probably watching my board. I'm glad that winning doesn't mean that much to me. At least in this context. First, a good pizza. Then, a good game.

Arta

Azul: Summer Pavilion - the game of choice

January 23, 2021

Rebecca likes to play board games and she will play them every night if she can find someone in the house who is a willing player. 

For her, the game is a gentle relief from a day in the academy.

I am more of a reader, but a game is social diversion, so I have just decided to devote part of my life to playing Azul: Pavilion. She wins every time when there are two of us. When Duncan joins in, then the winners are Duncan-Rebecca-Arta.

I am accustomed to coming third which could be a highly sought-after place if there were more than three of us playing. I think my Grandmother, Edna Pilling, used to call that place at the end, “sucking the hind tit”.

The competitive edge of me surged after so many losses. I went out to You Tube to see if I could find some tricks on how to win at Azul: Summer Pavilion. There were some 12 to 15 minutes uploads, so I read one, and then another. They mostly told how to set up the game, and how to play it; they didn't have that last piece--how to strategize better than the other players, which I suppose is the purpose of the game -- to let you have the fun of trying to win-- not going straight to the end of game and finding out the tricks and tips to advantage myself over other players, which is what I want to do.

When we begin to play, I always say, ”Oldest player goes first.” I read in the rules that the youngest player goes first which is going to be good for Rebecca, but not for me.  In this case, a little less reading would have helped my game.

Last night was the first time I have ever won. When all the points were counted, I was one point ahead of her. What doesn’t count is that on my last move she showed me how to get three points more. If she had she kept that secret to herself she would have been the winner.

Is it a fact that the person who shares their knowledge is really the winner.

Arta

Daisy Ointment

Photo Credit: Miranda Johnson

I woke up this morning to read email dialogue between Miranda  and Rebecca Johnson.

What could have seemed more natural?

I have listened to the women talk back and forth often through the summer.

I was hearing more talk about getting daisy-infused oil into a beeswax potion to be used during the winter for bruises.


Last nightBonnie and I had beren thinking about Miranda, how different the house seems with one of the adult voices gone.

Photo Credit: Miranda Johnson

Bonnie had been thinking of the game Arbortum, in particular, since she and Miranda had played it together.

Miranda had previously played that game with Bonnie, Bonnie saying that Miranda was beating her roundly.

There are similar strategies in p
I was doing the same thing to Bonnie last night, only with the board game Lost Cities.

I was also a good opponent, until I stopped to show her some of my strategies, after which the game playing became much harder for me.

Photo Credit: Miranda Johnson

We played card games last night, too tired to continue viewing the Stratford Festival On-line's production of Love's Labour's Lost.

"Have you seen this show," Bonnie had questioned.

"Well, of course," I idly answered.  I feel as though I must have, since I did know the title.  But the show was new to me, a show written around the time of a 1607 pandemic, which closed Shakespeare's theatre and so all he could do was write.  And well he did, writing King Lear during that time.  I wonder if his daughters had ever gathered daisies for folk medicine, specifically bruises, for in the show, he is destined to get many of them.

Arta

Musical Chairs in its newest form: TamBuzi

Review of Tambuzi by Haba
https://www.boardgamequest.com/tambuzi-review/

Leo sent a gift to the Johnson children: a board game variation on musical chairs.

Now musical chairs, itself, usually sends someone to the other room crying, or having another child fall to the floor having been pushed there by another more aggressive participate in the game, or it might involve someone with a record player, having to turn his face away from the game, so that taking the needle out of the groove doesn’t advantage one of his friends to win.

At least that is the way Musical Chairs was played years ago.

Leo couldn’t not buy the game. It was regular $50.00 for $5. OK. That made the price of the game tolerable.

... the game set p and ready to go ...
... the electronic bongo buzzer in the middle and ready to go ...

Mary and I played the game once last night so that we could refresh our minds with the rules. 

We took our time, since knowing how the game was played before (in real life) didn’t help us all that much.

We were sure that there had to be two rules when we played with the children.

No crying.

No touching the game board if it isn’t your turn.

With that we were armed the next day with the rules in our hands and the children by our sides.

The children were super thrilled to play the game of musical chairs in its board game form, shouting out TamBuzi.

One of the good points about the board game is that at least a participant gets two turns to loose before they are right out of the game. That was one good outcome.

The second is that the equivalent of taking the time keeper’s arm off of the phonograph is now a timer which can be made to flash with only with lights, or sound as though it is lightening, or growl as though it is an African jungle animal.

Now that is quite the time keeper.

The third good rule in the game is that the scoring is a little more difficult, making the participants needing to add a column of figures at the end of the game, which no one except Michael  can do yet, so the melt down over loosing can only occur when that part of the game happens, and which we just didn’t allow time for.

For out test with the children,  Mary and I decided to start the timer with the least aggressive sound and work our way up to death by lightening. Silence was the first mode of the timer.

“Ahhh,” the children wailed, thinking they were ready for the whole “African death by safari” sound at the outset of the play.

We had our characters jump around the board for just 30 minutes and then supper was ready. 

TamBuzi might not be the best pre-supper game to play, if parents are wanting a calm 30 minutes before eating begins. But we did have the advantage of knowing we can play the game tomorrow evening, so back into the box the pieces went before a winner was declared.

The analysis of the advantages of the game as declared by Mary and Arta?

Well worth the $5.

Arta

Musical Houses

I find that that it is not that easy to get Mary to do as I say. I would probably find that with everyone, having told them before the operation that I will be asking them to do irrelevant and sometimes useless jobs to do.  I also told them not to do these things.

Even given that I remember say that, Mary is not that compliant or flexible. She is, however. taking care of me so I am going to take that back. Mary is super flexible. For example, today Mary and I learned how to play a variation on the game of Musical Chairs, which I shall now call, playing Musical Houses.

Michael was having a D&D party at his house, getting his group of Grade III friends ready with characters for when the real work of playing D&D will begin next week.

Miranda must be the dungeon master. That is my guess for Alice and Betty were to come to my house. Richard came as well hoping to have some quiet time. Rhiannon took the girls

The True Spirit and Original Intent
of Treaty 7

to the park. Mid winter. Only in Calgary can mid-winter be a beautiful day. Maybe it was 9 degrees Celsius at the park. The girls swung from the monkey bars and slid down the slide. Richard spent most of him time sending me back to bed as Mary had instructed him to do. He has more fear of her than of me.

Of course, I am in a weaker condition than she. I laId on my bed some of the time and read The True Spirit and Original Intent of Treaty 7 by Treaty 7 Tribal Council, Walter Hildebrandt, Sarah Carter and Dorothy First Rider. I am at page 110. I’ve finished this week’s New Yorker magazine, cover to cover. Well there you have it. Between the park and my house and Miranda’s house and switching who went where, all of us were accommodated.

Taking care of me is the most work. My pills come to me in small dishes. Liquids I have to drink come in tall glasses. Somebody has to be counting all this out and I am not quite able to do it my own yet with any accuracy. I am surprised at how much I drift in and out of sleep. I sometimes wake myself up out of my dreams giving instruction to people about what they should be doing. The are not in the room when I am giving these instructions.

Richard brought over dinner again tonight. It was Octoberfest sausage and cabbage – slow cooked. As well, everyone got to tell their favourite part of the day. I wanted to finish the day off with my favourite story. Or at least the one I am to make into my favourite according to Rebecca. It is a story created for Grade III kids and up – all about excrement.

Alice has a high need for things being fair. If Michael has had two cans of pop at his D&D party she wonders where her two cans of pop are. Richard reminded her that she got special treats on their grocery trip. “Does one sucker and one chocolate bar equal 2 cans of pop?” She was stumped.

Rhiannon left to go back to her Lethbridge home today. I wanted to show her anything that was startling or unbelievable or just too much to believe that a grandmother could think or do such a thing. Being already a bit over the edge, I find it hard to tip myself there again. In the back of my mind, I am always wondering just how far is too far with my stories.

Betty in full personal make-again,
thrilled to have foiund "twins" i Arta's box of dolls.

I did want to show her the secret compartment in a bedroom pieces of furniture where I keep all my rings.

She only found it boring to take a look at the drawer since she has no interest in jewelry. I did were a neon lime green top with black and white zebras appliquéd on it with lots of sparkly silver beads attached to the arms as well. I wanted to amaze  Rhiannon with my sense of fashion.

Mary thinks it was no shock, since this look oftren cmes from me.

Thus endeth day 5 of what seems to be just a normal recovery..

ARta

Preparing for Remote Access to my Computer

... Splendor at one side of the table. 
Also a game of Uno at the other side of the table...

I needed to have some long distant secure remote access help when I was figuring out how to set up my new-to-me computer.

When that kind of assistance is given from a Help Desk there is a statement read, one principle of which is that you can stop the session at any time, and you are warned that the person coming in remotely can see what is on your computer.

... Michael prepares to beat his grandmother at Splendor ...

The last statement wouldn’t bother me, since I lead a quiet life with nothing on my computer that I couldn’t show anyone.

So in the person came, and as their cursor was moving around my desktop I saw a file that was called Torture Files.

I couldn’t remember what it was that I might have put in such a file, but I determined to look deeper into its contents when the session was over.

So here is what the contents were: pictures of me playing board games.

... Alice's hands control the cards ...

Yes.

Torture to me.

But I am drawn to board games since they present an excellent way to interact with my grandchildren.

I watched Doral’s friend, Pam Dirk, this summer.

When the games with children began Pam dove in with all of the excitement of a newcomer about to have the best moments of the day ahead, rolling the die and making her moves with such joy.

... a meal first and then cards ...

I am trying to follow her model.

But I can’t quite do it, can I?

I am at about 98% able to show excitement.

... Betty with her cards laid out in front of her ...

It is just that little 2% in me that has to label the file “Torture”.

Arta

Parks

Occasionally I check in with Doral by telephone to see how his lungs are doing.

He usually deflects the conversation to tell me the name of the most recent board game that his family is play which is Parks right now.

I have gone to see the video that describes how to play the game.

Part of the charm of the game, it would seem, is the gorgeous art work and of course, the chance to visit a National park as a destination in a board game.

Fun. I may try it.

Arta

Studying the Rules

Alice with her Monopoly money spread before her.

I didn’t think I would be spending the late evenings of my fall studying the rules of Monopoly Rules.

I didn’t bring much of the past with me, obviously, since there doesn’t seem to be that much carry over from when I was a child until now, knowing what move to make next. as far as the way to play goes. I am sure that the rules of Monopoly haven’t changed.

They just are something that my long-term memory didn’t hang onto.

So I have been looking at what it is that lands a person in jail, how a person can get out of jail, how much houses and hotels cost and how to buy them, and as well as how to purchase properties that can lead to the development of wealth.

Rolling triple doubles can put a person in jail. How hard do you think Michael laughed when my triple doubles sent me to jail, and not let me pass Go on the way there and thus loose my earnings of $200 for the round.

"Grandmother, if you want I will just give you
this get out of jail card for free.  I know how
awful it must be for you to be in jail."

"No I will pay for it, Alice.  You don't know it, but 
down the line you are going to be needing that money."

"

Alice bailed me out. She let me buy her “get out of jail free” card.

How sweet was that!

We played all morning, until I had to leave at about 11 am.

When I went over at 9 am to ask them if they wanted to continue the Monopoly game that we had been playing at my house the day before,  Michael said, “We have to ask mom since we are in big trouble.

“What kind of trouble are you in?, I asked when I got them over to my house.

 “Oh, yesterday when you weren’t home, we went into  your house and played with Sumin and Sumarga without telling mom”

“Ah,” I said. “I knew you weren’t over at the downstairs part of my house for there was no mess that you left.”

“Well, what happened was, Betty and Alice blabbed and that is how we got busted.”

I didn’t think I wanted to know anymore.

Arta

Plenty of Half Done Jobs

I have plenty of half done jobs. Hundred’s of them to tell the truth. The reason I don’t concentrate on finishing them was underlined again for me tonight. I pulled out some of them, only to find that an unfinished job can explode into 3 or 4 more jobs, and at the end of the night, I see I am left with a larger number of things to do than before I started.

I did get a few things done. I have set of venetian blinds left over from renovations. I began to pull them out from under the stairs (a place I once made Doral sleep), and Mati helped me carry them to the garbage. “Black bin or blue”, he asked. And after my answer, “A pity to throw them out”. A big yes to that. A pity to throw out anything that seems it might be recycled. But after saving them for recycling for three years, I think I did right by getting them to the garbage.

I carried the last of the leaf and branch clipping from the lilac tree to the green cart. These had to be place in 4 foot or less lengths in a paper bag for the pick up tomorrow. That is because Richard and Miranda filled 3 carts on Sunday as they trimmed down trees that were plugging up my roof gutters. A person can’t really get a lot of clippings into a bag as compared to the green recycling bin. Still, I tried.

Michael's new haircutr

On the table is a game of Monopoly. Michael has been asking to play the game ever since it was pulled out of the garage in an attempt to get control over that area of the space I inhabit.

This is a wooden chest that has many games in one: Sorry, Cribbage, Chess, Checkers, Monopoly – all the pieces stored in a wooden drawer in the chest that holds all of the games. And so the half-played game of Monopoly is on my table tonight.

We will finish it tomorrow.

There is a plus to the game.

I notice that Michael is getting good with figuring out the money, and helping the girls read their cards – either from the Chance pile or from the Community Chest pile.

They like to pick the card up, but they are not readers yet.

The barber shop gave Michael both a lollipop and a can of pop --
 and a nice hot towel on his face after the cut.

 I have no idea how they got him to
 stay still for the hot facial moment.

Before I go to bed tonight, I am going to read the rest of the Monopoly rules.

I can’t remember this rule: you can only put houses and hotels on properties when you own everything that is the same colour.

Is this a rule we just used to ignore when I was young, or did I never just get properties that were all the same colour and so didn’t get to the higher level of playing Monopoly.


I don’t relish the moment when Alice or Betty or Michael have to drop out of the game because they are out of money.

But I think that moment is coming tomorrow.

I hope there won’t be too many tears.

Arta

Lost Cities or Candy Crush

Lost Cities

Doral introduced us to a good 2 person game that can be played in less than 20 minutes.

That is, if you only want to play one game of it. 

But Rebecca and I had to do a play-off that ended in 5 games tonight.

And each time our scores got lower and lower. 

After Duncan’s concert tonight we were were tired. We went out to eat at the Dairy Queen afterwards and by the time we got home, energy to really work was gone.  Rebecca said she was going to play Candy Crush.  I suggested that we do one quick game of Lost Cities, but not if she was stuck on Candy Crush.

Oh, we did pull out our daytimers to see what the next 4 days looks like, and even that was exhausting, trying to carve out time to work on a book she wants to write. There just is no time for writing. On Monday her first 2 PHD students walk across the stage and she puts their new hats on them. But that will also involve lunch with their families and a long ceremony.

So our little foray into Lost Cities tonight, might be the last of what we see of each other until next Tuesday.

 We can’t get anyone else in the house to play this game with us.  I went around the house asking for other parrners to join us.

 Are we too competitive?

I don't think so, given that many of our scores go into the negative part of the regular numbering system.

Arta

Family Connections through Tabletop Games

From Bonnie Johnson:

My car only has room for one passenger today. 

Last night we loaded every table top game in our home into the car and took them to the Health Unit for the ASD Parent Support Group meeting.

On the white board I wrote:

" Family Connections through Tabletop Games"

Underneath I wrote a few definitions.

Family: A family is who they say they are. (Lorraine Wright and Maureen Leahey, 2009).

Tabletop Games: "Tabletop games are games that are normally played on a table or other flat surface, such as boardgames, card games, dice games, miniatures wargames or tile-based games." (Wikipedia, Dec 7, 2017).

There were 12 people who attended, with one group being a three generation family presence (4 yr old girl, mother, grand mother).

We played in various small groups a total of 5 games in one hour.

Just under half of us self-identify as having ASD.

There were many smiles, lots of learning, and an abundance of love in that room.

Some one asked David how we came to have over 70 games in our possession.

He recalled, it all began when my Great Aunt Janet and my Great Uncle Glen were cleaning out their attic. It was like a garage sale, but they let us take any of their games away for free.

Bonnie adds: If you study the photos, you just might see "Pilling" written on some of them. We consider ourselves just the careful caretakers of these games until their children or grandchildren want them back.

Bonnie