The Past, The Present, The Future

How accurate fortunes can be. Like, two of them from this week's papers here for my sun sign(Pisces)  say:


After a demanding past several months, the return by Uranus and, in early September, by the bountiful Jupiter to Pisces leads to breakthroughs in several areas of your life. Suddenly past arrangements spring back to life.
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This week Uranus returns to your sign for a stay of seven months. It first moved into Pisces in 2003, and since then you've learnt a great deal. Now, you have an opportunity both to analyze the recent past and consider the future. Take good advantage of what could be a remarkably enlightening period.
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Of course, I usually believe the fortunes I want to believe in...*grins*, and ensure they come true. So, what do I read in this one? Wait, let me not guess- you tell me what you understand.:)(Austy, awaiting your interpretation)
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For some reason, I've been remembering games and toys from childhood. Wonder how many of you enjoyed such unique toys in your bachpan?


a. Bagatelle:


 This one was a board, with a wooden strip on the right side. The aim was to hit a marble through the strip, so that it shot ahead and landed at one of the 'points'(On our board, these points were with flat headed nails- three of them/five of them, etc). As usual, the person with the max points won. And, there was one easy shot that'd take you to 'LTP'(Lost Total Points)- that was the 'groanworthy' section for everyone.:)
There, I googled the word, and, expectedly, found a pic. Now does it look familiar?
b.Ring Board:


This one was a Board- we had put it up on one of the walls of the living room(of our ancestral home, of course- today, if anything is put up on a wall, it'd probably be a LCD monitor or a Sony PS...LOL). There were three rings- maroon, pink and blue, I think. The colour had nothing to do with the game, of course. There was a long nail bent 90 degrees, with a rubber gasket on top(to avoid hurting you), and the board had points like 5,10,15,20,25....the best score was the most difficult-it was 75 points. We spent many a family hour playing this game, noting down points, totalling them, seeing who won...when one of the rings broke, it was joined together again by heating it(it was plastic) and using some glue.:) Wonder where the board went, finally?:)(Must ask Dad)...can't find a pic of this anywhere- suffice to say, it's like a darts board, only, with the points fixed in formation of two, then three, two, four, two or something to that effect.:)
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c.Carrom:
This, of course, most people know. Only, our carrom board was made heaven knows when, but it had huge pockets, so it was always a delight to play on it, since there were more chances of two carrom-men going into a pocket, even followed by the striker, if you hit it hard, leading to a double due. And, when boric powder was sprinkled on that board-whew!!Lightning speed was the name of the game, nee, striker.
Even though this one doesn't really need a pic, here goes:(this one's of a normal board, of course- no pic could do justice to the home made board we had)
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d.Boggle:
This one was at a relative's place- sometimes we would go to visit her just to play this game.(couldn't afford it in those days). It was a box with a square, transparent lid. There were, I think 16 empty squares in it- and, letters (there, I googled and confirmed).


Let me see if there's a pic of the box as well. Yes, here it is:

There was the sand filled hourglass. One had to close the box, shake the letters, and let them settle down. In the time the sand went from top to bottom,one had to make as many words as possible, across, sideways, diagonally....no jumping. Naturally, this one was one of my favourites....haha. And, yes, it's still available- I saw it last time at Crossword.:)
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e Scrabble:


This game needs no intro. I definitely know one scrabble champ blogger- Poo. Now, of course, you get scrabble on CDs, so you can play on your laptop/PC/ipad, whenever you want...but, it's not the same fun as in playing on the board, is it, Poo?:)

The most exciting part of the game? Getting a triple word twice..did you ever score like this? I did, once or twice, but can't recall the words...haha.:).this remains my favourite game, even today- if I can find anyone else wanting to play it. :)
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f.Monopoly:

Oh boy- this is another fun game- it takes around the whole of U.K., from Kings Cross to Liverpool Station, from Old Kent Road to Mayfair-(Now, I think it's made, covering other countries, as well?)- this game, of course, used to attract a few family squabbles, specially when it stretched on too long, of, when one person kept winning, etc...and, one does need to have 2-3 hrs free, to play it nicely....and, today, who has that much free time?

Landing on Chance or Community Chest, always used to send a thrill up the spine. Would we get a fine, or, a bonus, or, a Go To Jail or Get out of jail free card??
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g.Housie/Tambola:

Still one of the popular party games- whenever we had a family gathering, housie would be a patent TP. Four corners, jaldi five, lines, full house, second full house....the fun never ended...and, the better the announcer, the more fun the game would be- 'better', of course, means, one who uses the right terms to describe the number he picks out from the bag-like, 'two fat ladies' for '88', Top of the house for '90', Unlucky number for '13'(but naturally), etc..in fact, check out this link, if interested, and if you're a housie announcer- lots of new 'nicknames' for the numbers(that I didn't know, at least)


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Let me make this a tag, now- all of you(Abhilasha, Arunima,Austy,Cyn, , Lopa,LP,Ms. R,Purba,Poo,Rain Girl, Sush,The Ego....)  who read this, can you recall your favourite childhood games? This one is for indoor games.


 Let me think of a post for outdoor games- but, of course, non-standard ones, not the  football/hockey/cricket variety.
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Till next time, cheerio and keep smiling, always.:):)

Comments

Purba said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Purba said…
Amit, when you tag people you have to link them LOL

I was hooked to scrabble. still am. The only difference I mostly play the online version.

Remember Chinese checkers?? That was good fun too :))
xyz said…
i m a piscean too..
such a nice gamey gamey post... i have played monpoly.. housie.. carrom.. scrabble
Arunima said…
carrom for me. Apart from that, chinese checkers. We played Ludo, snake and ladder, and carrom as a family. Sweet memories. Mom often used to be lucky and get ahead of us in ludo. All of us ganged up against her and tried chasing her colours. :-)
We actually bought a carrom board all the way from Guj to UAE when I was a kid. Honestly it went from Guj to Cal and then it came to UAE. Imagien lugging the big thing all across the place :P
austere said…
hmm.. so are you finally deciding upon the move back date and the bookshop?? I hope all your dreams come true.

Carrom (as a spectator), Snake and ladders, scrabble, monopoly and housie.
Pooja said…
Oh I will do this tag. I stilll love Scrabble- like you very kindly pointed out :))) But the rest of them have faded away, this is a good way to remember :)

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