Playing Games, Learning Life Lessons
I loved playing board games growing up. I was the youngest of our generation so it was sometimes a challenge convincing my cousins and / or sisters to play with me, for we all outgrow games at one point or another. I liked the board games because of the interaction they demanded. I had plenty of time playing alone with my toys without interaction from others. I have older sisters, seven and nine years older. At some point one of my sisters began playing with dolls. Her playing with dolls included drama with dialogue, similar to the soap operas she would watch on teevee ( while I wanted to watch cartoons ). Some of my toy playing was with G.I. Joes and the only drama or dialogue was "get them" and "they got me" with the sounds of constant bombs and bullets. But every time I had the opportunity to play a board game with others, I never wanted this type of game playing to end.
One of my favorite board games my siblings and I had was Monopoly. I liked the idea of counting the money, buying and selling property, collecting rents, etc. One had to think and pay attention to what others were doing. With each role of the dice, fate and chance would happen. You could land in jail, you could end up paying taxes for something ridiculous, or you could realize a windfall. Some real estate on the board was more attractive than others, mostly for the rents they would render. There was some decision making needed when the role of the dice would put you in certain situations, like having to pay rent and not having the funds. If you had property, you'd have to mortgage it, sell it or negotiate something with whomever was demanding rent. I liked this game because it would sometimes go on for hours. I didn't mind the test of patience or stamina when it came to this game, it meant for me more time chatting with my relatives over the game and trash talking. There was a time when my sisters and I were shocked at what another player had done while playing this game. We happened to be playing with an uncle of ours and he was doing far better than any of us. He was also filling in the role of the banker and this took just a bit more attention, since playing the banker is a responsibility. The task of being the banker does not grant anyone extra privileges or leverage over other players. It is a task allowed to be done in trust and in service of everyone else. The game of Monopoly ( definition of monopoly ) is designed to absorb the wealth into few hands while eliminating all other players ( making them broke and unable to continue due to being stripped of everything ). At one point during the game with our uncle, him being far ahead of the rest of us, he simply drops his money into the bank and became the bank! I don't remember what became of the rest of the game after that, perhaps it ended with him declaring he won. Who would have known this gaming move of his is exactly what happens every now and again in the history of managing 'civilization.'
The cousins who lived down the street and next door to my grandparents had the Game of Life. I loved the idea of being a doctor or lawyer and filling the car with a wife and kids. I liked getting the life card and reading what was next in 'life.' In this game, you get an identity. You could also get another card and soon find you're broke because of some catastrophe. And just like in real life, having the title of a doctor or lawyer brings with it an air of 'respectability' as do many such titles. If you were to introduce a significant other to your relatives or friends using a title like doctor or lawyer, you are most likely to build not only a sense of authority in conversation but also leverage some sort of credibility in your conversation. If you were to introduce someone as unemployed, you'd most likely get the opposite reaction or no reaction at all.
Hungry Hungry Hippos, where you are behind a very hungry hippo with the aim of swallowing up as many marbles as possible, was a game the cousins around the corner had. The hungriest hippo wins. This was one of the simpler games I played, yet it still makes sense to the adult observer regarding the world after one's childhood runs out; whoever has 'the most' wins... or so people think. The game was redundant and it wasn't my favorite, but when childhood boredom strikes, any game would do to help pass the time.
In the card game War, you battle your opponent and win by having the highest ranking card at any given hand... until one player has all the cards. This was another simple game that I loved playing. It would sometimes take a long time to absorb all 52 cards from your opponent. One of the last times I played this, I remember my sister getting frustrated. This particular game had become boring to her. As with many games of this caliber, they are simple and no strategy or thinking is involved, only reacting to what card comes up. Sort of like watching teevee and changing the channel when a commercial comes on. Although we can see that strategies do exist in the real world when real war is being waged, I dare argue that no thinking is involved and no real strategy towards peace occurs with war, but only an absorbing of one people's things and a reacting to what happens before you.
In Chess, which I bought myself after learning how the game pieces move, you plan to topple the other player's king by systematically eliminating the other pieces or strategically surpassing other pieces protecting the king. I never really built a strategy with this one, but would simply wipe out everyone in my path on my way to toppling the opponent's king. The brother in law who taught me the moves of this game would tell me it isn't called 'killem' because I would simply take all his pieces out, one by one. Perhaps I was too young to conceptualize strategy, for to me this was like the card game war, but on steroids and with movement rules. Yet, I would still win! It wasn't until later in life as a young adult that I played chess with someone who taught chess for a living that I began to see how really dull I was at this game. The game of real life is very much like this; benefiting the few who figure out what is really going on while leaving the rest in a lurch.
This particular post was inspired by some points made in this video lecture by Mark Lakeman which I highly suggest watching and learning from. The world ( or at least your neighborhood / town ) could experience of revolution of sorts by implementing some of the ideas this man mentions. He uses sarcasm at times, so be sure to pay close attention. Here is the land ordinance he mentions. I suggest reading it to gather an insight into what he speaks of.
One of my favorite board games my siblings and I had was Monopoly. I liked the idea of counting the money, buying and selling property, collecting rents, etc. One had to think and pay attention to what others were doing. With each role of the dice, fate and chance would happen. You could land in jail, you could end up paying taxes for something ridiculous, or you could realize a windfall. Some real estate on the board was more attractive than others, mostly for the rents they would render. There was some decision making needed when the role of the dice would put you in certain situations, like having to pay rent and not having the funds. If you had property, you'd have to mortgage it, sell it or negotiate something with whomever was demanding rent. I liked this game because it would sometimes go on for hours. I didn't mind the test of patience or stamina when it came to this game, it meant for me more time chatting with my relatives over the game and trash talking. There was a time when my sisters and I were shocked at what another player had done while playing this game. We happened to be playing with an uncle of ours and he was doing far better than any of us. He was also filling in the role of the banker and this took just a bit more attention, since playing the banker is a responsibility. The task of being the banker does not grant anyone extra privileges or leverage over other players. It is a task allowed to be done in trust and in service of everyone else. The game of Monopoly ( definition of monopoly ) is designed to absorb the wealth into few hands while eliminating all other players ( making them broke and unable to continue due to being stripped of everything ). At one point during the game with our uncle, him being far ahead of the rest of us, he simply drops his money into the bank and became the bank! I don't remember what became of the rest of the game after that, perhaps it ended with him declaring he won. Who would have known this gaming move of his is exactly what happens every now and again in the history of managing 'civilization.'
The cousins who lived down the street and next door to my grandparents had the Game of Life. I loved the idea of being a doctor or lawyer and filling the car with a wife and kids. I liked getting the life card and reading what was next in 'life.' In this game, you get an identity. You could also get another card and soon find you're broke because of some catastrophe. And just like in real life, having the title of a doctor or lawyer brings with it an air of 'respectability' as do many such titles. If you were to introduce a significant other to your relatives or friends using a title like doctor or lawyer, you are most likely to build not only a sense of authority in conversation but also leverage some sort of credibility in your conversation. If you were to introduce someone as unemployed, you'd most likely get the opposite reaction or no reaction at all.
Hungry Hungry Hippos, where you are behind a very hungry hippo with the aim of swallowing up as many marbles as possible, was a game the cousins around the corner had. The hungriest hippo wins. This was one of the simpler games I played, yet it still makes sense to the adult observer regarding the world after one's childhood runs out; whoever has 'the most' wins... or so people think. The game was redundant and it wasn't my favorite, but when childhood boredom strikes, any game would do to help pass the time.
In the card game War, you battle your opponent and win by having the highest ranking card at any given hand... until one player has all the cards. This was another simple game that I loved playing. It would sometimes take a long time to absorb all 52 cards from your opponent. One of the last times I played this, I remember my sister getting frustrated. This particular game had become boring to her. As with many games of this caliber, they are simple and no strategy or thinking is involved, only reacting to what card comes up. Sort of like watching teevee and changing the channel when a commercial comes on. Although we can see that strategies do exist in the real world when real war is being waged, I dare argue that no thinking is involved and no real strategy towards peace occurs with war, but only an absorbing of one people's things and a reacting to what happens before you.
In Chess, which I bought myself after learning how the game pieces move, you plan to topple the other player's king by systematically eliminating the other pieces or strategically surpassing other pieces protecting the king. I never really built a strategy with this one, but would simply wipe out everyone in my path on my way to toppling the opponent's king. The brother in law who taught me the moves of this game would tell me it isn't called 'killem' because I would simply take all his pieces out, one by one. Perhaps I was too young to conceptualize strategy, for to me this was like the card game war, but on steroids and with movement rules. Yet, I would still win! It wasn't until later in life as a young adult that I played chess with someone who taught chess for a living that I began to see how really dull I was at this game. The game of real life is very much like this; benefiting the few who figure out what is really going on while leaving the rest in a lurch.
This particular post was inspired by some points made in this video lecture by Mark Lakeman which I highly suggest watching and learning from. The world ( or at least your neighborhood / town ) could experience of revolution of sorts by implementing some of the ideas this man mentions. He uses sarcasm at times, so be sure to pay close attention. Here is the land ordinance he mentions. I suggest reading it to gather an insight into what he speaks of.
Comments