Steve (my writing partner for those who haven’t kept up with my posts here) and I used to play Scrabble®
I’ve always said I have great “parking karma” – I always find a parking space. (In Los Angeles, that’s a big deal.) Of course, that’s UNLESS I’m in a foul mood, then I can circle the block for hours until I remember that I have great parking karma and find a space! Someone then, magically, pulls out of a spot right in front of me, and voila! I’m not late for my court da… I mean movie.
I know that sounds very “new age”. And my definition of someone who is “new age” is someone who is willing to believe anything. Well, I suppose I’m willing to believe anything, but I do some investigation and end up not believing a lot of stuff. I don’t believe in iPods, for instance. Who thought up that myth? Little white buds that you stick in your ears for aural pleasure? Next, you’ll try to tell me that they can translate foreign speech for you on the fly. Sounds like something out of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
Sorry. Back to choosing a tile.
Things have gotten, shall we say, “hairy” in the last several months. Both Steve and I have been talking a lot about what isn’t working, which, using the “choose a tile” metaphor, is like choosing that it doesn’t work. Very recently, we both noticed we were doing this, and started choosing other tiles. Things began to appear. Opportunities. Like magic. Okay, not really magic, they were already there all along, but we started noticing them or remembering them and choosing them. That’s the magic of real magic, it’s not magic at all. Okay, I even confused myself with that one.
Are we out of the woods, yet? No, but the trees look pretty while we’re here. And we can see a quaint village in the distance. We’re close enough to see the smoke from the chimneys and the rabbits eating out of the rutabaga gardens. Okay, I tend toward folk imagery. I grew up in the sixties and listened to Jethro Tull
I noticed this afternoon that I’ve been pontificating a lot, lately. Yes, I know, but more than usual. I think I’m gearing up mentally and spiritually to write fiction again. I choose that tile. Better than a “J”.
Steve still chooses fireworks and liquor, but that’s him.
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Geoff Hoff is co-author of the best selling satirical novel Weeping Willow: Welcome to River Bend
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5 Comments
Wow. Another piece of my current puzzle. Thanks for the reminder. Choosing a tile replaces fear and worry. That was that pesky corner piece, to use a double (mixed) metaphor.
Years ago, I tried to figure out what the highest scoring play in Scrabble could ever be. I came up with “Quizzical” – with the “Q” on the triple word score and the “Z” on the double letter score (you’d need to use the blank for the second “Z”) – which would put the “A” on the second triple word score (so you’d basically get 9X word score, using both the “Q” and “Z”, with the “Z” doubled). And since you’d use all 7 letters you’d get the 50 point bonus! To make it even more challenging, two of the other letters would need to already be in the correct place beforehand (since it is a 9 letter word), but it is possible, and I believe it’s the highest score you can get. Of course, I’ve never actually been able to make this play in an actual game – but if you’re going to aim for the right tile … you might as well aim high!
You didn’t say what the score would be!
It was loosely based on the actual game we played that prompted the whole “choose a tile” thing. Of course, Steve didn’t get a 400 point score, but it was the less literary version of the same thing.
Hmm – I just added it up and it looks like Quizzical is 392 points. But I think Quetzals is only 374 points by itself (both plays could be increased if you complete other words at the same time, of course)
That must have been it, he added a letter to a pre-existing word to round it all out. We spent a lot of time figuring it out with an actual Scrabble board there, so I know it was correct, but it was a few years ago, so….