Beginner's Luck

It's so hard to be dumb. Having to learn the same lessons over and over again. I know my kid is noise-sensitive. I know that he collects ear plugs and has to carry them with him everywhere he goes. I know that he goes ballistic if the music, or the TV, or the applause, or Michael gets too loud. Then, why oh why, when I took him to the Children's Theater production of Rumpelstiltskin down in McKennan Park did I sit us right next to one of the two speakers? Because I'm dumb, that's why. During their "Testing 1-2" shenanigans when the speakers make that god-awful screeching noise, guess who was right there to catch the worst of it? Us. And guess who grabbed for his ears and started screaming at the top of his lungs that he wanted to go home? David. And Michael right behind him. I managed to convince them to stay, but we had to go stand in the background around 25 yards away from where the rest of the audience sat. And David held his hands hovering over his ears most of the show. Despite all the trauma, David did say, after all was said and done, "What a great show!"

We hosted our first playdate today. A "park" friend named Emily and her two boys, Preston and Connor. Her boys are within weeks of the exact same age as mine, and we all had a very nice time together. Slowly but surely, making friends.

And now, on to Bunco. This is the game night that I was invited to play tonight where I knew neither anybody there nor anything about the game. First, the company. Everybody there was very nice and social with me, and I was grateful for their hospitality. Who knows, maybe one or two of them will be my good friend in a few months...Now, about the game. 12 women. Each puts in $10 to play. 4 at a table. The person seated across from you is your teammate. 3 dice per table. 1st round, roll for 1s. 2nd round roll for 2s, and so on and so forth. One point for each time you roll the target number. If you roll 3 of the target numbers at once, that is called a Bunco. If you roll 3 of any "off" number that is a Mini Bunco. Buncos are worth 25 points, and usually mean that your team will win the round. In rounds 1, 2, 3, and 4, I rolled 3 Buncos!!! I won each of my first five games. Over the course of the night, I rolled 2 more Buncos, and a slew of Mini Buncos too. For you mathematicians out there, there is only a 1/216 chance of rolling a Bunco. And I got 5 of them in just 12 rounds! At the end of the night, the pot is divided as follows: $60 to the person with the most Buncos. $40 to the person with the most wins. $20 to the person with the most losses. I had the most Buncos, AND the most wins (with 9 of 12), but you can only win in one category, so I walked away with a net gain of $50. Bunco rules ;)

Last but not least, I found David a new Suzuki violin teacher today. She is in the Philharmonic Orchestra here. (On a related note, we were looking at David's Time and Money game the other day, and I showed him the picture on the five dollar bill, and said, "Who is this?" "Abe Lincoln" he said. I showed him the picture on the one dollar bill and said "Who's this?" "Mozart," he confidently replied. ;) A true musician at heart, that David.