Tuesday, September 9, 2014

The Cards Speak for Themselves

I wish I had thought of it. Then this post could just be about me and how brilliant I am and I wouldn't have to include anyone else in it. But alas - we don't live in a vacuum and I will give credit where credit is due and share and share alike, blah, blah, blah.

I was back to playing bridge at the good old Bridge Center after a long self-imposed hiatus during which we sold the home we lived in for 23 years and where we raised our beautiful boys; moved 23 years of stuff out of that house and into a brand new house with no history, memories or mold; and married off our second and last son who, similar to his brother, apparently likes his new wife better than us because it seems he's always over there with her instead of here with us. 

So I was struggling to remember the particulars of this ancient and mysterious game when I put us in 2 over 1 mistakenly. That *@#$*&@ convention should never have been conceived. And speaking of ill-fated conception - I'll bet dollars to donuts that 2 over 1 and Rosemary's baby have the same parents.

Anyway, I realized what I had done and lacking the skills to right this wrong, I swore instead. I said "*@# $*&@ it." Waiting for a yellow zero-tolerance card to be flung in my direction I wondered if you really could get in trouble at the Bridge Center for using colorful (or in this instance -  upper case number keys) language.

That's when I ...ok ... Andie came up with a brilliant idea. A card in the bidding box that can swear for you! A card that could be brown with the word "#%&*" or a card that was fiery red with the word "*@#^" - you get the idea. You're only limited by your imagination here.

But being smarter than Andie, I took this idea a step further. I contacted Jannersten Forleg in Sweden who manufactures the famous bidding boxes and requested a set of swear cards, which in Swedish they call "svar" cards.

To make a long story still pretty long but a little shorter, I received a package in the mail yesterday with a set of bidding cards that I am going to add to my bidding boxes at home and will bring one with me to the Bridge Center every time. They are flesh colored and the tab at the top looks like a little closed hand but with one finger protruding from it. On it is printed "@#$%" ... in Swedish.