A lot happened this week. Lots a cleaning and talking with my wife and talking with my best friend. More writing and more graphic work. But the best thing I got to do this past week was spend time with me son, Donny.
Donny had come to me one day and asked if I could teach him how to play my favorite boardgame - Monopoly. The problem is, the three-year-old gets into everything. While I could just try to "fight her off", it'd take away from the fun of playing and my instruction as I was trying to teach the game.
I remember that my son just wants more time with me so instead of saying no, I decided that the next time I went to "the office" I'd take him with me and we'd bring the game and we'd have "the office" to ourselves and I could teach him the game,
That day was Friday so we packed up my work stuff (which would prove pointless because I did no work Friday) and the game and sought out to play. Not before we when to our neighborhood Speedway store and got snacks
We got in, set the game up and then I went into objectives and what this and that meant and began the game. Donny is such a quick learner! We recently went over the game Rummy and he picked up the rules quickly and picked up from strategies in just a few rounds of the game. He picked up Monopoly just as quick. I had to go back and forth between "competitor" and "father" with the competitor trying to win and his father teaching him what to consider when making decisions around the board. In one full game, that took about 4 hours, Donny understand the game and was playing competitively.
Unfortunately, Donny didn't win and he was a little upset. Losing in Monopoly doesn't happen quickly or suddenly. It's slow and gradual. You slowly watch yourself go into debt and finally bankrupt. He shed a few tears and we hugged but we had a great time. I got no work done at all but I spend the day with my son and it was worth every second of "make-up writing time" I had this weekend.
Interesting note - as I was explaining the game to him, I had to discuss "house rules" - rules that are made up and aren't actually part of the game. We don't use house rules because, as the official Monopoly companion book states, house rules (rules like, waiting until you go around the board once before you can buy properties, putting money on Free Parking, etc.) are the reason Monopoly games are played for 6, 7, 8+ hours.
See, Monopoly is like its own economy. When you add too much money into Gameplay, it's like inflation. At least, that's how I always saw it. But the more I had to actually had to explain it in the context of the game (where the objective is to bankrupt your opponent while becoming rich yourself) it makes sense how our actual economy works and why "The Rich" don't want to increase wages and why prices go up if more money introduced. "The Rich" are playing Monopoly for real! See, adding more money in the game keeps all the players afloat. They can pay taxes, they can pay rent, and they can pay penalties when they arise. They can buy houses and spend money comfortably. And that game/economy can go on forever! But that's not their objective.
Keep this in mind when you encounter people who aren't "holding as many deed cards" as you.
- The Moon