COVID-19 Social Distancing Day 5

For those of you who don’t know, my wife Kari and I have been together since the first semester of our freshman year in college.  That would be the fall of 2001.  One of the many reasons that I fell for my wife is the fact that she loves board games.  Throughout our time together we have slowly accumulated a rather large collection of them.  We have everything from Uno Attack, to Harry Potter Trivial Pursuit, to Mouse Trap, and many, many others.  About 15 years ago, she made an offhand comment about one of her favorite board games. I filed that away in my evergrowing list of “things Kari likes that I could potentially surprise her with”.

A side note to all you fellas and ladies out there.  You all have smartphones. If your significant other mentions something that he/she likes, start making a list in your “Notes” app on your phone.  Then, when you need an idea of something to give as a present, you already have ideas. Boom. You’re welcome.

So college Andy bought college Kari the board game Clue. Wait for it…DVD EDITION!!

You guys remember when the DVD editions were all the rage right? All the cool kids had the DVD edition of every game.  DVDs were the best way to watch movies, so why not add an awesome element to a board game?

Well fast forward 15 years to the COVID-19 Social Isolation of 2020 and we decide that Day 4, actually Night 4 is the time to break out the Clue DVD edition and teach our kids how to play this timeless classic.

Here is a list of some things we learned:

1. The DVD version of Clue is not nearly as fun as the original.
2. DVD animation 15 years ago might as well be from Oregon Trail on an old school Apple computer. (Only those of you over 35 will know what I’m talking about)
3. If you use the DVD game, plan on it taking about 7-9 hours to complete. Holy crap.
4. If you are colorblind, the pixelated number system on the DVDs combined with the red “magnifying glass” does not solve your issue with colors.  I had to resort to asking my 7-year-old (who was my partner in the game) to make sure I was reading the right number.
5. DEFINITELY partner up with younger kids.
6. Adult Andy got his butt kicked by Adult Kari.

While the DVD inclusion process was a little messy, once we got the hang of it, we had a blast  The kids begged for round two last night, but since round one took half my life, we said maybe we’d do it tonight.

Most of us have an old dusty boardgame or seven in a closet somewhere. What better time to introduce our kids to the joy of Mouse Trap? Or the joy of skipping someone in Uno?

Or, the feeling of the highest level of rage possible…playing Monopoly?

 

 

 

I don’t have a philosophic take on our situation today, just encouraging you to unplug, soak up the family time, and try to be focused on the present moments, and not worry about the past or the future.

Stay safe, stay healthy, and always remember, PEOPLE CARE ABOUT YOU!

P.S. In case you were wondering, it was Colonel Mustard, in the Rose Garden, at midnight, with the scarab broach.