Things I like about mahjong

I left work yesterday with a coworker of mine. As we (awkwardly?) walked to the subway together (no it wasn't really awkward...except for when I tried to chase him off the subway...and he was like 'UM...you need to go one more stop to get to Times Square' and I was like 'haha! Well, obviously I'm following you!' and then the lady was like 'DOORS CLOSING'. OOF.)

I asked him about his evenings plan. He said, I think (I have a problem with listening...), that he didn't have any. Or maybe something about a concert or a food-tasting event? Or walking his dog? cat? ferret? (that's a rodent-like animal, Michelle...not a bird.) He asked me about mine and I said, with a twinkle in my eye, 'Oh, well, my friend is coming into town and then I'm hosting mahjong at my apartment'.


He seemed surprised. 'You play mahjong?,' he asked.

'Yup'.

'Do you do that ironically or something?'

'I assure you," I said, "that nothing I do is ironic [because I don't know what that means, exactly, despite having multiple conversations on the subject][these brackets represent words that aren't said in a conversation, but are implied, right?]

As I continued on my journey, I thought about how happy I was and how excited I was to be heading to collect Michelle, my alien friend ( don't worry - she gets it all the time), and to be playing mahjong (background: last summer at Jason's birthday party, Debbie and Michelle and Bri started talking about how their moms used to play mahjong all the time. It came to light that Bri and Michelle were in possession of mahjong sets. A few beers later and the three of them decided to set up a mahjong group. A beer later I had invited myself along because a) I like organized activities and b) I like games and c) I like planning things in advance and d) I was drunk).

Things I like about mahjong
1) Funny name. Mahjong. Mahjong. Mahjong. Keep saying it. That'll occupy you on a rainy afternoon.

2) Tiles. The feel of the tiles against your palm / fingers ( depending on how you hold them I guess?) is really nice. They're so square and substantial. They have pretty pictures on them. They make a clacking noise when they land against the table. You know? anyone? hi? h? ?

3) Snacks! Well...I guess snacks aren't an official part of mahjong, but in our group, they might as well be. From cheese plates, to pretzels, to homemade desserts and veggie platters...we take our snacks very seriously. It's nice sharing cheese with others because about the aftermath of buying a block of cheese and eating it all by myself. Sharing cheese with friends is better. Wait...am I still talking about mahjong?

4) I forgot to mention that we also have wine!

5) The game! Well, the game is pretty fun, and something that I like about mahjong. This might seem fairly obvious but, you never know. The game is strategic and involves passing tiles (see above) and using patterns and mixing tiles (also, see above)...it's kind of complicated, but the rush of a win! WOO! FORGEDDABOUTIT

6) The irony? No. I already told you that I don't know what that means!

7) My Jewish / Asian roots. Playing mahjong helps me to connect to my nanas of yore and allows me to prolong the lie that instead of being a 25-year-old SWF, I'm actually a 10 year old girl living in Shanghai. I like that.