The Domino effect...and How the pizza industry is trying to kill us...

When I was a child, my family played games regularly. We weren't a board game family like my husband's...Instead, we played mostly cards and dominoes. We actually had age limits where you grew into playing certain games... In my family, when you turned 16, you got your driver's license, your dating privileges, and the right to take your place at the 42 table. (For those that do not know, 42 is a domino game from the south...it's complicated...and we take it very seriously...like our tea)... 

No one plays these games anymore... I do not know of any people under 40 who actively play domino games...or card games, even...except poker (one of the least complex games I've ever played...It's playing psych out for grown ups...)

****flashback sequence****

Here in the great state of Arkansas, gambling is illegal....except we have casinos...and a dog track...and we are part of the triple crown of horse racing... But otherwise...it's a no go..The rich people get away with having casino nights anyway by hosting "charity" functions put together by companies which set up a travelling casino. Lifestyles of the rich and richer pay a huge sum of money ...which is exchanged for a set amount of chips... they play, and their winnings are used to "bid on prizes"...like trips to Hawaii  and new golf clubs...

As a 16 year old, I worked for one of these companies as a side job. It didn't take long before I was dealing Blackjack. I sometimes made 100 dollars in an evening in tips...Not bad money for a 16 year old..(It certainly beat my day job slinging fast food...) My friend and I (he was also 16) were once unquestioned when we visited the open bar at a function...We were obviously workers...and it was 21 and up at the door.  We were finished with our shift, and ordered a long string of margaritas.....okay...we knew they were dirty...but it was fun!... We had to have my parents drive us home.... There really isn't a point to the story except that.... thanks to my early exposure to cards and dominoes.... by the time I was 16, I could be the stick man at the craps table....and it was lucrative...

****end flashback****

 I feel like I learned so much from playing these games growing up...Like there were some cognitive processes that escape this generation because they were never taught to reason.... I believe there is a  pressing need to revive the classics and reverse the trend of brain numbness...

To this day, I can look at a game of dominoes and count the dots almost instantly. I can tell you which dominoes will make you points and how to get the most out of a hand. Thanks to the grandparents' influence, I know where to interject appropriate curse words for proper emphasis...I can whip anyone in a game of spades or gin....and I can show off when I shuffle the deck. 

Still, I believe it is more than that. I think I learned to process information linearly...I learned strategy... I learned how to be a good winner...and a good loser... 

So... Here is my proposal...We bring it all back. We play and teach our children to play a spectrum of card games and dominoes. Start with dominoes. It's counting...They can play with help by 5 years old. We can save the education system from common core math by teaching our children linear processing through games. We can do this... I call it the domino effect.... and it just might be the answer. Peace...

P.S. Do not confuse this with the Domino's effect...