November 2008

We had a Super Ultra Comfy party @ Peg’s house this month. Everyone came in their jammies. However, we were experiencing unusually warm weather (high in the 70’s) so Peg decided NOT to put the fireplace on. What a shame, that always adds an even more comfy feel to the night. Oh well. I’ll pretend that the fireplace on the right is Peg’s…ahh…I feel comfier already. We dined on chicken pot pie, mac & cheese, buttery mashed potatoes, apple crisp, rice pudding & pineapple pudding.

After everyone arrived at Peg’s, she passed out wine glasses w/ notes, napkins & tootsie pops. Then went into a speech about how thankful she is for her friends & how much they mean to her & how they’ve shaped her life, etc. Then she told us about a conversation she had w/ a very wise Native American man that she’s friends with. His “friendly advice” to her was, “When all else fails, just remember 2 very important words – fuck it!” Ain’t that the truth!!! So we toasted w/ our glasses & got on with our evening.

Everyone stayed for the whole game this month. Marge took a 2 hour nap to ensure she’d stay awake. Peg said she didn’t care how long we played because she was “already home – you guys can put me to bed!” We wrapped up at 10:30. Not too shabby. After I tried to suggest that we start our games earlier, Debi thought maybe we should eat first. We noticed by the end of the night that this was a brilliant idea! We decided to make it an official rule that we eat first from this point forward.

Shake your groove thing! We seem to have a “dance party” whenever we play at Peg’s house. Problem is, when you get 7 ladies together of various age groups & musical tastes, you can’t all agree on the same thing. We flipped the radio around for an hour or 2 before we finally decided to just turn it off. We did agree on a Prince song before the game started. Patt was waving her flowing locks & doing high kicks. Marge was up & dancing w/ us. Debi left her tassels at home, or she would’ve had a very special dance for us (ha, ha, ha)! That would’ve worked much better w/ her Halloween costume anyway!

Statistics show that whoever is hosting the party seems to win big! We put that theory to the test @ Peg’s house again this month. She started off winning the Mystery & went from there. She hit a super fat four corners w/ just 5 chips on her card. In the same round, she went on to take flush & Pokeno. I wonder if we can go 4 for 4 at Cosmo’s next month.

The weather was quite frightful! There were statewide tornado watches & everything. But, even the weather couldn’t stop (most of) us from making the trek to Peg-a-la’s. I should’ve been absent after having 3 teeth pulled just a few nights before, but I’m hardcore! Just don’t make me laugh too hard…oh crap…my jaw…where’s that ice pack? Absent this month was Kate L. Since everyone already knows what she’s been through in the last week, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that she didn’t want to party. Here’s hoping Pita has a speedy recovery & is feeling well enough to return next month.

Last month, some of us had to “use the force” to remember to look for diagonal Pokenos. Debi & Patt both remembered & actually got a few on the diagonal! I can’t believe it! No more confusion for you guys! Congrats to you both!

MYSTERY BOX

Katie G. was responsible for the November Mystery. She put together a “Holiday Survival Kit”. In the bag was a hand-crafted (by Cosmo) paper Christmas house, lotion, candle, pack of Tylenol, bottle of Captain Morgan, can of cola & cup. As we picked, Peg complained “I haven’t won a Mystery in a year!” After checking stats, the last time she won really was at our last comfort party in November 07. Remember ladies, your odds of winning are much better if you show up for every game…but anyway…we got to picking. The first time, Phyllis won it. She decided to pass since she’s won a few times. When we re-picked, Peg actually won!

HO! HO! HO!

We will be celebrating a “retro” Christmas on Saturday, 12/13 @ the Geib’s Tiki Lounge. The party will start at 5:00. We will be playing at least 1 round of cards in between all that holiday merriment. Don’t forget to bring your Secret Santa gift ($20 max limit) with you. In the event that you can’t make it – please see that you pass along your gift so it gets to the party. After Peg got beat for her gift at our B-day Tea Party, I don’t want to see any more sad faces. Nothing quite like everyone else but you having a gift…that’s a sure fire way to have a “Blue Christmas”!

Cosmo says, “Not cooking is a gift to yourself!” So, she opted for our holiday menu to be pizzas from her local pizza shop. When we get there, we can pick toppings, pitch in a few bucks & place the order. While we’re waiting for delivery, we can exchange gifts (get that out of the way). Everyone seemed very excited about this plan.

Maybe since everyone was so comfy, it was super easy to agree on the date/time. It was also a problem free Secret Santa pick. Even though I reminded you to think of some things, some of you ladies didn’t heed that advice & took longer than others (Spanky) to complete their list. But, it all went smoothly & Peg could finally start calling @ 8:00.

NOVEMBER SHOUT OUTS

Shout Out #1: We have 2 Pokeno sisters celebrating birthdays this month. Kate L. on 11/17 & Phyllis on 11/21. Kate L. got b-day dinner @ my house. Phyllis will be getting a fresh coat of paint in her dining room & kitchen. Cheers to you ladies & many more happy b-days to you both!

Shout Out #2: As you know, Phyllis really gets into Halloween. Every year, her & Mark go to some parties & enter costume contests. This year, Phyllis wore her mermaid suit & Mark was the old man of the sea complete w/ boat made out of cardboard (see photo). Not only did they win the costume thing, but at the same party, there was a pie eating contest. Phyllis entered & won that too! After losing 100 pounds, it’s pretty ironic (don’t ya think) that she could out-eat all the other contestants. She said she went to the gym the next day & her trainer made her work off all that pie. Congrats on your big wins!

RANDOM FUNNIES

R.I.P. Hoover upright – All through the evening, there were chips falling all over the place. Since Peg’s got hard wood flooring, the chips echoed when they bounced. Phyllis was accusing some of having chips falling out of their crotches and/or butts. Chip smugglers…argh! Marge kept dropping chips & apologized to Peg. Peg says, “Don’t apologize to me – apologize to my vacuum! It’ll be picking up all the chips!” Her vacuum is bag less, so I bet the tink, tink, tink of chips in the collection tank will be deafening because there were a ton of chips dropped! Here’s hoping that the vacuum will make it out alive!

They’re not even the same color! While Patt was taking her turn calling, she kept confusing the 6 of diamonds w/ the 6 of spades. We kept an extra close eye on her & ensured that we were all on the same page w/ the same cards.

WHAT ARE YOU THANKFUL FOR?

This is the time of year when we pause for a moment to reflect on the past year & be thankful for what we have. I posed the above question to my fellow Pokeno Sisters and this is what I got back: Phyllis is thankful to not be a grouch. Debi’s thankful that she hasn’t fallen off the tightrope. Patt’s thankful for good friends, good health & the excess that is Pokeno. Marge’s thankful for family, friends & faith. Peg’s thankful for friends & enjoying life. Katie G’s thankful for friends as weird as herself. Me, I’m thankful for true friends who are REALLY there when I need them no matter what they’re going through at the time & will listen to me without running my stories back to others.

So, until next time…try not to eat to over indulge during Thanksgiving dinner. Oh…who am I kidding…go on & have 2 servings of everything!!! See you in December…