Games

Games were a part of Hall family gatherings when I was growing up. I guess it was a way to involve five kids, but also I think both my parents enjoyed them. We played games like Masterpiece, Monopoly, Yahtzee and Scrabble, as well as card games like Spoons and Crazy Eights. I remember my dad trying to teach us kids Pinochle and making an elaborate series of charts showing card values and scoring.

One of my favorite games was Charades and since many of my family members were dramatically inclined, this was quite enjoyable. One memorable charade had one of my brothers swimming on the floor, while another gazed up at the sky. The song -- "By the Light of the Silvery Moon."

When we were in Iowa over Thanksgiving, I took my latest obsession, a game called Blokus. This is a deceptively simple game that involves putting squares down on a board to try to get the most squares down while blocking opponents. I bought it originally to take to the girl that I mentor, but when I played it I realized that it was beyond her capabilities. However, Blokus is addictive and the more you play it, the better you get. I am hooked, and occasionally Ron even consents to play with me,

Lately I discovered that games are available in the App Store on my iPAD. I started with Solitaire, which I have played endlessly, but unfortunately not won endlessly. I then got a gift card for iTunes and promptly bought the full version of Scrabble. Usually I play against the computer and I thought I was pretty good until I hit the "Hard" level and discovered that most of the words that the computer comes up with are words that are totally unknown to me.

A limited version of Blokus is also available as a free app, but I have to pay about five dollars to buy the full version of the game.  I know that's not a lot, but I am cheap and it seems frivolous to spend money on a game. I'll probably get it though. What can I say -- I love my iPAD!