New Skill

So I'm learning how to play bridge.

My boss hosts a weekly bridge gathering at her apartment near Washington Square Park. She and her friends have been meeting there for a year and a half. They have three regular players, but they are always struggling to secure a steady fourth player...this is problematic, as bridge requires exactly four players to play a game.

Anyway, my boss has been encouraging me to come and check it out for some time, partly because she has some sort of idea that I might be good at bridge. She knows that my brother is a world class bridge player - guess she's hoping it runs in the genes!

I had no idea at all how to play bridge before going to check it out for the first time last week. I've now gone to bridge night twice - the first time just to observe and ask questions, and the second time to sit in and play (and, of course, ask more questions).

I was amazed at how quickly time passed while I played. At one point I looked up to check the clock and noticed that three hours had passed almost imperceptibly. Who knew bridge could be so much fun?

I think perhaps I will stick with this bridge thing, continue to attend bridge night at my boss's apartment when I can. It's a tremendously complicated game - there's so much to learn, and it feels good to stretch my brain in a completely new direction. Plus, there's the added bonus of the possibility that maybe, just maybe, I can hope to understand my brother a tiny bit more.