Austrian makers

[Bwood]

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
I know pinochle and bridge (that should get me most of the way through whist).

But canasta is a game for old ladies.

Like mah jongg.

Next thing you are going to say is Cribbage is a game for old guys.

And who would you say plays Double-Deck Elimination Hearts for money?

 

[Jeff Grossman]

Cribbage is a great game for all ages!

I'm only poking fun at canasta and mah jongg because my grandmother used to play them, and those games bring back visions of her 'hen' parties... half a dozen old Jewish ladies, gambling and cackling and arguing about the rules. I am aware the some people take mah jongg very seriously.

Hearts... is a game I leave to others.

 

[Bwood]

originally posted by Jeff Grossman:
Cribbage is a great game for all ages!

I'm only poking fun at canasta and mah jongg because my grandmother used to play them, and those games bring back visions of her 'hen' parties... half a dozen old Jewish ladies, gambling and cackling and arguing about the rules. I am aware the some people take mah jongg very seriously.

Hearts... is a game I leave to others.

These are all the games I played with my grandparents. Or watched my parents play with them when i was a kid. (Even though my grandparents didn't know any Jewish people.)

The double-deck elimination hearts thing was an army game my dad taught us. It is a brutally mean game.

Then our family started playing bridge, but never in a really geeky way. We made up our own bidding rules.

 

[Thor]

I, too, played canasta with my grandmother. I could have played it with my grandfather, but...well, there's a way to play canasta that's very, very evil. My mother tells stories of how, nearly every time they'd play when she was a kid, he'd bring her to tears. I do remember that frustration the few times I played him...the card equivalent of someone ripping long, thin strips of skin off of you very, very slowly...and so, in my mind, canasta isn't just a game for grandmothers. It's also a game of psychological warfare.

 

[mlawton]

bridge rocks. Bidding rules are for the weak. counting points - feh. freestyle is the way to go. euchre is an acceptable substitute for bridge if alcohol is involved.

Cribbage is only fun when you play with the older generation and stealing points is allowed. Actually, it's fun in general but the geriatric set adds a certain special twist to the game as they make up their own rules and explain them so convincingly.