Holy frijoles...NOW we're talkin!!!

I've been to 14 Scrabble tournaments in the last twelve months...and I've finally placed "in-the-money"! This weekend, at the Cleveland Classic in Strongsville, Ohio, I won 11 out of 15 games and finished second in my division!!

If you've followed along with my blog at all, you might know that I've been engaged in many of these tournaments during my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour. I've studied and studied and played and played...trying to prove to myself that I chose to take on a tough game, against tough opponents, and that I could succeed. This weekend's tournament gives me a feeling of progress...a small piece, a beginning to that success.

And it has been a fun year for Scrabble. I've flown and driven all around:

Elyria, Ohio (March);

Charleston, West Virginia (April);

Richfield, Ohio (April);

Pittsburgh, PA (June);

Rocky River, OH (July);

Pontiac, MI (August);

Hudson, OH (September);

Huntington, WV (Club Tourney, October);

South Lyon, MI (October);

Elyria, OH (October);

Durham, NC (October);

Lexington, KY (November);

Mississauga, Ontario (November); and, of course,

Strongsville this last weekend.

The $125 I won for my second place finish in the Cleveland Classic was nice...but not as nice as the other things I gained this weekend. I got 134 ratings points, a poster signed by all the players in my division, a cool dinosaur made out of Scrabble tiles, tons of compliments about the boards I'd made, and, best of all, I got to spend time with friends.

In 2009, I'm not going to play in as many tournaments but I'll still do about one a month. But what a great note to end the year on!! Thank you to Dallas and George (the Strongsville directors) for making this last tournament of the year (well, my year) so fun and comfortable. A very special thank you to all my friends who support this Scrabble effort of mine, who contributed to my fun and adventure, who logged hundreds and hundreds of miles on the road with me, who laughed with me, who helped me study, and who sometimes just listened when I'd lose my mind.

See you all in 2009!!!

(Cheesy? Yes. The only semi-clever title could think of? Yes.)

After our scary Scrabble-travel-adventure last week, I forgot to post the follow-up with this fun picture. This was taken the morning after we had gotten some sleep and we had not died on a snow-packed highway.

And I have to ask...is my nose that crooked or are my glasses that crooked...or both? If it were both, then would my glasses sit straight?

Boy, today has been rough. It was the second day of the MOO Scrabble tournament in Mississauga, Ontario and all of my group were anticipating some decent results, based on Day 1. Although three of the four of us who attended the tournament maybe didn't plow over the opponents as we'd hoped, we each gained a nice number of ratings points. The fourth Scrabble friend came down with the flu last night and couldn't play today. (What a nightmare. Away from home, unable to finish a tournament, feeling like crap, and having to travel with a bunch of people.)

The games aren't a huge focus for me right now, though. I'm coming down off a serious stress-attack. After our fourth game today, I went to pick up my friends Sara and Jennifer who came along to do the tourist thing. And guess what? I got lost....for two hours. There are lots of things that could have improved the situation, but by the time I realized that I could not get myself going in the right direction, I felt like I was so far off the mark that even stopping for directions wouldn't have helped (because there would be too many details). Plus, at that point I was in tears and very, very upset.

Anyway, I made it back to the tournament after missing the entire first game following lunch. I was so shell-shocked that I racked up three huge losses in the last three games. Thank you to everyone who was concerned while I was MIA and who offered me comfort when I returned. (By the way, the tournament people did try to call me when I didn't come back from lunch but my phone didn't ring, most likely because I was in Canada.)

After a long, long day, the crew piled back into the van, each of us ready to get to our respective homes. We knew there were some winter weather warnings to the south...but there was really no other direction to go. Since we weren't quite ready (or invited) to relocate to Canada permanently, we headed out. Following some fast food dinner, a gas tank fill-up, and maybe 120 miles on the road, we found that winter weather.

With Dallas navigating, and offering a great deal in the way of calm, solid driving advice, and consultation on our travel decisions, I drove on for an hour or so. The stormy weather faded in and out, allowing us to build up to a slow-but-reasonable speed and then forcing us back down to 15 miles an hour. When the high parts of the snow tracks started scraping the bottom of the van, I started to lose my energy for it again. While I know there was little chance of a problem, I was fretting primarily over the safety of my five passengers. Secondarily, I was concerned about our comfort (as in how uncomfortable it would be to be stuck in a snow bank with a non-operational vehicle). In a tie for third place, I worried about the happiness of my co-travelers and about maintaining my van in its non-wrecked state.

After a while, I pulled over to let Dallas drive. The decision had been to push on a little way and see if the weather got any better (and if the trip got any better with a fresh driver). We took a break at a gas station, allowing people to make some phone calls and get snacks.

As soon as Dallas' shift started, the roads began to clear. We built up a little speed...up to about 45 miles an hour. As if we had driven through some tiny little sheltered stretch of road, we emerged into a road in bad condition just like it had been. I'm not sure if I should say Dallas is a more confident driver or just a less nervous driver (and I'm not sure if there's any difference) but he seemed to be doing just fine. For no obvious reason (other than your average packing of snow and ice), we started into one of those sideways, spinning slides. Dallas brought the vehicle back into control right away and, right away, it was decided that we would pull off at the next exit and get hotel rooms.

Now we're safe and sound (and starting to relax) outside of Erie, PA. The rooms weren't too expensive and it wasn't absolutely critical that any of us be at work tomorrow. In the frustration of the moment, I wasn't sure if it was better to stop for a hotel or if I was overreacting. Now that we're here, I'm glad.

There's a slight tapping sound on the window where snow and ice are hitting it. By tomorrow morning, though, the roads will be treated and it will be daylight (as implied by the term "morning"). With at least a fairly decent night's rest, we'll press on toward home and hopefully feel better about the process.

Obviously the key for my good Scrabble play is comfort level. I've always played my very best games against friends and people I really like, in general. Get me in a tournament game, though, and my brain locks up like an engine with no oil. But, you know, there are many ways to achieve a good result based on this theory.

Of course, I could play only my friends and people I know I really like. I could also waste my Scrabble word list memorizing time with goofy things like "meditation" or "yoga" or "healthy exercise." Seriously...quit talking such craziness. Just stop it.

Although it sounds like the words of a situational alcoholic in the making, during this weekend's tournament in Lexington, Kentucky my relaxation came in the form of cranberry and vodka. I'm not talking about doing shots after every bingo or anything...just one drink over the course of the afternoon purchased at the golf course snack bar. And I tell you what, it was just the thing! I didn't freak out, I didn't get upset, I stayed calm in the face of an opponent's opening bingo...and I won some games.

Actually, this weekend was my personal best, performance-wise. Starting off with my more typical 25-50% wins, once things became more chill, I was able to rehabilitate my record and end at 9-and-6 (and a kick-ass spread of +468)! Not only did I not finish last, only 121 spread points kept me from my first "in-the-money" tournament.

I have no idea what will happen to my rating, though. I guess it will go up a little but there are at least three potential factors:

First, we were seeded based on ratings which did not yet include results for those of us who played in Durham last week (a tournament in which I took a ratings hit). Second, we had four unrated players in the bottom division. Two of them did very well, finishing first and third, which kind of skews the numeric results (as far as ratings go). Third, there are the results of the "Late Bird" tournament (which was early in the morning) to squeeze in. In that tournament, I was slated to win about two games (which I did).

Some highlights (for me):

Best win - 458 for me to my opponent's 224 (a 234-point spread).

Best bingo - STAMPING for 108 points.

Best ice cream - Graeter's with friends.

Best overheard comment in a hushed narrator's voice - "Today...we've secretly replaced Ken's prozac with highly-potent equine steroids. Let's see what happens."

Best setting for a game - the patio outside the clubhouse during a beautiful, 70-degree afternoon.

Best special day - Jeff Clark's birthday on Sunday, November 2nd. (Happy birthday, Jeff! I totally forgot to tell you that on Sunday.)

Best moments overall - Traveling with my NSA Club #620 crew and figuring out how to get the Sirius radio activated without wrecking the Super-Duper Minivan in the process.

Best thing to look forward to next in the 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour - The MOO!

So, you know...even though I don't yet know the technical result as far as my rating and all, I know that I consider this tournament a personal V-I-C-T-O-R-Y!!

As for the alcohol, I suspect the effect will be about the same as that time when I was in middle school softball and ran into a long string of strike-outs because I was afraid to swing at pitches which could, in any small way, be out of the strike zone. The coach made me practice swinging at each and every pitch, no matter how far out of the zone it was. I learned that I could decently hit almost all of them, even if I had to sort of jump over the plate to reach it. It was fun and it served to release the hold the anxiety of the situation had on me. I think this will be about the same. I'm really figuring out just how much not worrying about it helps me play.

And, hey...if I get freaked out again, I'll enjoy my game with a little cranberry-flavored assistance. Who cares? I got ID!

Tonight finds me in Lexington, Kentucky for the Ironman Tournament (which I like to call the Ironwoman Tournament). I guess if I really go all in, I'd say it's the Ironperson Tournament. Nonetheless, this stop on my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour is going pretty well so far. It's likely that I won't walk away too disappointed like some other times. We'll talk about more of that later.

But this downtime gives me a chance to show you the newest piece of original art in my vast collection. His name: Atlas.

Atlas is made of Scrabble tiles...and Atlas was made by Joe Larson. Check out Joe's site on MySpace, which includes not only pictures of his Scrabble tile art, but his paintings. (The paintings aren't Scrabble-related, though. Joe was an artist first, then a Scrabble player.)

So now Atlas is living on the desk in my office, in a far corner where he's safe from notebooks and giant folders. It makes me happy to be working on something boring or generally uninspiring and then look up...and remember that I have a life outside of those walls.

Again, check out Joe's stuff. You might find something you really like, or find an inspiration for a custom piece.

If you want to contact Joe, you can do so via his MySpace
site, which includes his e-mail address.

Martha, Martha, Martha. Mi amiga, my confidante...the quiet girl who would have ripped the arms off that crack ho neighbor of Sara's if she'd thrown that beer bottle at my head. Oh, yeah...and she's the one who turned me on to Scrabble. In fact, she tried to convince me for quite a while that I'd enjoy the game. Sometimes now I wonder if she ever regrets that move. I mean, Martha loves Scrabble. And she's better at it than I am. But she's not as "et up with it" as me.

So I'm glad that this weekend had only the average amount of drama for a Scrabble tournament (heh...funny, yes). To clarify, by "drama" I mean me freaking out or tearfully examining my need to be playing this game (or my motivations for playing) after a string of losses (or just a couple of really bad ones).

As for the specifics in Durham, I won zero games of my first five but then six out of the last ten (counting a bye) with a spread of "minus a bunch." I was pretty okay with that result. Despite being somewhat of a natural counselor, I'm about the last one who can recognize that if I'd just stop freaking out about the game, I'd do a lot better. For me, doing a lot better in this tournament came after I had resolved that I didn't care how the tournament went because I was out-of-town with my husband, my kids, and my beloved club members. (Eric and the kids came to Durham to have some fun and visit with Eric's friend and his children. They loved Monkey Joe's.)

Okay...back to the Scrabble blog portion of this...um...Scrabble blog. Our fearless Scrabble club leader, Brad Mills, took third place in his division. (Go, Brad!) Martha came out with a win-loss of 5-and-10 but: (a) her dad is in the hospital recovering from surgery; (b) her kid was back home in Charleston throwing up; and (c) she had a headache all day on Sunday. This is the part where you all send positive energy to Martha.

There was really nothing more notable for me as it applies directly to the game. I played one opponent who really, really frustrated me by knowing (or following) almost none of the rules despite having played in almost as many tournaments as me. (As an aside, the few times I've had to be firm with an adult as I would with one of my children, it's really bothered me. I don't like to adopt that role with "grown-ups.") In contrast, we had an ultra-pleasant 11-year-old player whom I got to play twice. He was cute, hyper, friendly and polite...and on his way to a really good amateur-part-time-career in Scrabble.

Next weekend, I'm heading off to Lexington, Kentucky for the Iron(wo)man 3. The bus (a/k/a Tina's Super-Duper Mini-Van) will head out with Martha, Brad, Lisa, and Chris on Friday night and we'll be staying in some ultra-sweet digs courtesy of Lisa's hotel bargain-finding skills. Eric will see me off with his traditional "Hope you grab a good sack!" (which is his funny but perhaps a little weird way of saying he hopes I "draw the bag"). I hope I draw the bag, too, but also that, as I move through more and more tournaments, my relaxation will increase and thus my wins will increase.

So we'll see in Lexington. And, after that, the MOOoooooo. (Details to follow.) Later!

Even though the event itself was planned and executed so, so well, last weekend's tournament in Elyria, Ohio was "off" for me in a lot of ways.

It was the first time I'd taken the kids with me but not Eric. My sister, Anna, and her friend, Cher'Ron came along to watch the kids and spend some time with them. Though Anna is 19, she's put off getting her driver's license for so long it's become sort of a phobia for her. Cher'Ron, our designated driver for the four non-Scrabblers, developed a bit of a fear, herself, of driving the kids very far from the tournament site. SO, keeping the kids occupied and happy for the weekend was somewhat distracting. They did have a good time, but it took a lot of adjustment and coordinating.

As for my Scrabble games, the first day ended "okay" with a record of 3-and-5. On Sunday, I started by drawing the bag against Cecelia Huber. (If you don't know, "drawing the bag" means that I got pretty much all the premium tiles during my turns.) You know, everyone draws the bag sometimes, and can beat a much better player. I figure I'll get the bag drawn on me, too...so it'll even out.

Well, instead...I was absolutely demolished in three out of the next four games. I mean, I didn't just get beat. I got beat like I stole something. In those three games, the nearest I came to a win was a 144-point loss. Funny thing is, the fourth game was against the number one seed and I came within 9 points of him (a guy who admits not being very good with adding the score). Given the stakes, the need for a mental boost, and the closeness of the score, I would have normally requested a recount. Problem was, I had to run out and get the kids from the hotel before check-out time. So...no recount for me. Instead, another loss.

Are you ready for the best part? During my third-to-last game of the entire tournament, I was so frustrated that I accidentally messed up the drawing of the last several tiles (incorrectly thinking the bag was empty). As a result of this, the director had to come over and spend several minutes reconstructing the last few plays and making step-by-step rulings based on each play. (The director and my opponent, coincidentally, are two of the nicest people you could ever meet. Neither of them did anything to make me feel bad.) So my frustration with myself, combined with the building disappointment about my low success, finally peaked.

Sitting there as poor Dallas had to make determination after determination about my play, my eyes welled up so fast there was nothing I could do to stop it. There was no whining, no sobbing...nothing like that. Just me, sitting across from my fun, gracious, and sweet opponent, silently soaking up a fountain of tears with the sleeve of my sweater. And it was no tiny, single teardrop. These were the steaming-hot, spigot-turned-all-the-way-on type of tears.

When Dallas finally walked away, I looked at Pat and said, "I'm sorry" for having caused such a problem. Pat cheerfully reassured me that it was just not a big deal. Terri walked over and offered comfort by rubbing my shoulders. Linda sat down, let me cry on her shirt, and made me laugh. She told me no less than two stories of crying over Scrabble games, both as a relatively new player (like me) and as an advanced player.

In the end, my record was 5-and-10 and my rating went down just a little bit. Let's hope this upcoming weekend's Triangle Tarheel Trifecta will be the upturn. But, you know, even if it's not that, it will be a weekend spent with my dear friend, Martha, and her husband Brad. They don't get to attend as many tournaments as I've been doing (maybe because they're somewhat more sane), so this weekend is special.

In conclusion...

(1) There may be no crying in baseball, but there obviously is crying in Scrabble.
(2) Dallas Johnson is a wonderful tournament director and the extra effort he puts in really make the events smooth and fun.
(3) I'm really happy to have gotten to know so many nice, fun, and smart people in this regional Scrabble tournament circuit.
And, (4) You have three days. Start sending positive anagramming vibes now (and you can go ahead and throw in some good drawing-the-bag vibes if you want).

I'd have to say this weekend's tournament in South Lyon, Michigan was, overall, one of the most satisfying this year. Actually, the whole weekend was really satisfying.

After a quick flight to Detroit, I picked up my rental car (rock bottom price and all, courtesy of Priceline.com) and headed to IKEA in Canton, Michigan. As I waited for my dear friend, Spinster Girl to arrive, I wandered up the escalator, through the restaurant, and down the "down" escalator. I found myself immediately in the dinnerware area and, looking around, saw no way out (except maybe running back up the down escalator). I hunkered down, not sure I'd ever escape...then...finally, I saw a customer come in through what looked like an exterior door. Turns out, it was the door back to the lobby. So...I made it. (Ehh-SCA-peehh.)

Once SG arrived, we made a quick circle around one part of IKEA, headed back out the door, and looked for a place to have dinner. We got lucky and found a really great wing place where we sat and ate and talked for a long time...and spent very little money doing so.

Of course, once we got to SG's house, the effects of airport maneuvering, a full belly, and a little liquor set in...and it was time to go to to bed.

The next morning's drive to South Lyon was quick and scenic. The only problems were the numerous near-death experiences during about the last 15 minutes because I couldn't help but look around at the beautiful farm-house-y places lining this suburban/county road. Arriving at the tournament site, I was, as always, very happy to see several people I've gotten to know and enjoy from Michigan, Ohio, and thereabouts.

(Non-Scrabble friends...being that this here is, at least in part, a Scrabble blog, I must get all technical now. Please feel free to zone out until a little later. AND...3...2...1...sleeeep.)

The Magitastic Intrawebs Site predicted I'd win 1.4 games. That means I needed a win, a tie, then maybe some sort of penalty for looking directly at an expert player. I consider all this as I walk into the tournament site. And then...

Greetings all around...sit down...blah, blah, blah...promptly get my ass kicked by Jim Widell. Out of respect for, well...me...I won't publish the score here. Let's just say, my only shining moment was successfully challenging his first play (a would-be bingo...VEGGITE*).

After that, I DID have a shining moment, wrangling a victory against Joyce Stock, whom I had beaten only once out of the seven other times we'd played. This was a good game for us...my 464 to Joyce's 358...and a new bingo for me with BEC(K)ING (for 90 points). I also got 78 points with ANTIQU(E) but I let Joyce get me with POUTANES*. An interesting aside, I had to lay down HITTER for the triple after trying like hell to bingo with SHITTER*. (Heh, that would have been a win-win for me.) Of course, now I know SHITTER* isn't good. I can't believe it, though! I mean...c'mon! MOTHERFUCKER is a good word but SHITTER* isn't? The world's gone mad.

THEN...another trouncing (upon me). This time, it was at the hands of the lovely and sweet Barbara Dixon. I did, however, manage a respectable 374 to Barbara's 411. Next, David Brown and I had a decent game, but really nothing very notable for either of us. I will say that: (a) David has been studying the heavy-on-the-vowel words; and (b) David is a super-nice young man who always remains friendly and polite. (He's older now than in his profile picture...maybe somewhere in his early teens.) NEXT...my sound defeat at the hands of Sonia Lyda. Ahh-gain, out of respect for myself, and pure shame, I won't publish the score here. THEN...sound defeat at the hands of Kevin Lucas...yada, yada, yada. (Look at him...he's even smirking at me in his picture!!)

Fortunately (for me), I had a lot of luck when I played Sophia Murzin. A solid player who's over 90 years old, it's unfortunate that Sophia obviously is sometimes forgetting all those words she's known. I'm never disrespectful of the fact that she should be able to beat the snot out of me at Scrabble. However, during our game over the weekend, I won 501 to 320. Of course, I had four bingos with ENQUIRES (104), REVOTING (78), RUDDIEST (60), and LINGERER (83). Later in the day, a player was being quite short with Sophia and, after a few minutes of this, Sophia firmly told her opponent, "Be patient, please. If you're lucky, one day you'll get here, too." It made everyone on our side of the room chuckle...and one person clap.

When Kim Harris and I played, we did so badly that we promised not to divulge our scores if at all possible. So...unless you can demonstrate to me why you really need to know, then you're not going to meet the "need-to-know-basis" requirement. I can say that I won...by one point. My win came after I bingoed out with MANNERS for 73 points (and 17 seconds left on my clock).

Okay, so...trounced by Kathleen Washburn, trounced by Cheryl Melvin (who is so funny and whom I adore), and beaten soundly by Mikki Sutherland (although I did enjoy a moment when I played CLOVERED for 92 points, which Mikki unsuccessfully challenged).

After that, I played the 12th game, my last game of the tournament, against my previous opponent, Joyce Stock. Truly my luckiest game, I won with 524 points to Joyce's 303. My bingos were QUIETERS (104) and UNSTALL* (91).

In the end, I came away with twenty bucks for the high word score in my division (QUIETERS) and twenty bucks for the highest-scoring word using the most letters in the words "South Lyon". That was with UNSTALL* because, yeah, this time it could be a phony. As for my rating in the National Scrabble Association, it should increase a very decent 50+ points!! (I'm quite happy with that one.) OH YEAH, I also took home sixty bucks profit for winning Saturday night's poker tournament at Jeff Fiszbein's house. Woot!! My new nickname, by the way, is "Tina Totten King Poker Queen." It makes me laugh but now I'll never win again since I've written it here.

(Non-Scrabble friends, WAKE UP NOW!)

As I drove my car back to the airport, I had time to reflect on my weekend and my Scrabble Tour. I was happy I had some extra hours to share with Spinster Girl and that we found a great little diner to have a great big breakfast. (I'll let her tell you about that one. I think it's going to be her new "place".). I thought about the time I got to spend laughing with Linda, Steve, Barbara, George, and Cheryl...and laughed some more. (Hey, Jeff...I'd be writing about you too if you didn't have your priorities all messed up with "family" and crap like that. Next time, have your relatives schedule their weddings on non-tournament weekends.) And Saturday night, I slept the best I had in literally months. We're talking seven or eight solid hours with no tossing and turning. Niiice.

So next weekend, it's me, Anna, Bella, and Edie heading up to Burning River. It should be fun. Anna and the girls will swim in the hotel pool and maybe go to the mall. I'll get to play lots of Scrabble and see some of the Scrabble people I like but haven't gotten to see in a while. And the beat goes on...the beat goes on. La de da de de, la de da de da.

As we approach October, much of my free time is spent preparing for and contemplating the rest of the year's Scrabble tournaments. It's going to be hectic...but crazy fun no matter what the outcome.

So far in 2008, I've completed seven Scrabble tournaments:

Elyria, Ohio in March;
Charleston, WV in April;
Richfield, Ohio in April;
Pittsburgh, PA in June;
Rocky River, Ohio in July;
Pontiac, Michigan in August; and
Hudson, Ohio in September.

THEN...when I had to cancel my mid-September trip to Fenton, Michigan, it made me a little crazy so, in response, I added not one, but two more tournaments to the list. I had originally thought about letting Elyria, OH go and traveling to Durham instead (the following weekend) because friends were going to Durham and we could carpool. THEN...an opportunity arose to take the kids to Elyria (and Anna, the kids' aunt/sometimes-babysitter and Anna's friend). They can find fun things to do, go to the mall (which the kids love), swim in the hotel pool and so on. AND...Eric and I decided that we would take the kids to Durham so they could all spend some time with one of Eric's best friends who lives there (who has kids of a similar age to ours).

So with everything turning out as it did, the rest of the years looks like this:

Charleston, WV (club tournament) on Oct. 4;
South Lyon, MI on Oct. 11 & 12;
The Burning River Blowout in Elyria, OH on Oct. 18 & 19;
The Bluegrass Ironman (Iron-WO-man) in Lexington, KY on Nov. 1 & 2;
The MOO (Mississauga Ontario Open) on Nov. 15 & 16; and
The Cleveland Classic in Strongsville, OH on Dec. 6 & 7.

You're right...that is Ludacris Speed. But it's going to be great fun. The kids and Eric will get a road trip or two. I'll get to stay with one of my best friends, Spinster Girl, when I'm playing in South Lyon. I'll get to carpool to Mississauga with several players from the Akron/Cleveland area. And in every tournament, I get to try and increase that rating, gain some skill, and, of course, win the after-hours poker games.

Saturday morning, I packed Bella, Edie, Eric, and Lisa into the van. (The kids were fine but Eric and Lisa resisted getting into the trunk.) So our destination was Stop 3 on my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour: Hudson, Ohio (between Akron and Cleveland).

Lisa is a fellow Scrabbler from our club here in Charleston, WV and a co-contributor to our club's Scrabble blog. Our original plan was to travel together and room together at this, her second official Scrabble tournament. Eric and the girls decided to come along, hang out at the hotel pool, go to the Cleveland Zoo, and so on. That was good for me because, even though I was out-of-town in a tournament, I got to have dinner with them and spend a little time with them.

As for the tournament itself, it was an "open-rated" one, meaning that, regardless of your rating, you could potentially be in a match against any other player. The upside to this type of tournament is that if you have a good game, your NSA Scrabble rating will go up quite a bit. The downside, if you're in the lower rankings like me, is that it's hard to get one of those wins.

There were some highlights...I managed a solid win against an opponent who has thrashed me each of the three times we've played each other in the past. Lisa pulled out a win against one of the top-rated players there.

In the end, Lisa and I did pretty well. I came out with a win-loss record of 4-and-7 (even though Cross-Tables only predicted 1.4 winning games for me. Lisa did even better with a win-loss of 5-and-6 when Cross-Tables had predicted she would win 1.1 games. We'll both get a boost in our ratings and I'll agree that, even though my goal was to come out with maybe 5 victories, a rating increase is so much better than a rating loss. (Duh.)

I remain undeterred. Okay...well, I was deterred for about 18 hours after the tournament, during which time I had resolved to never, ever play Scrabble again. Now...I'm undeterred again. I've got at least four more tournaments before the end of the year. Actually, since Eric's work scheduled has been changed around and he and the kids can travel a little more, I may add one or two other tournaments.

Stay tuned for more details!
And donate generously to help me keep this tour going!
All the cool kids are doin it!!

That's right. I've exhausted all my efforts to find a babysitter for this weekend so I could make the trip to Fenton, Michigan (and the next scheduled stop on my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour). Actually, I had a sitter but that plan fell through. And the role of weekend babysitter has to be filled with someone close, usually a family member or a babysitter you've used for a long time. The kids would be thrown off balance quite a bit by having someone less-than-close be their caregiver for that long. Or maybe they wouldn't. I don't know. Either way, I'm not willing to risk it. Eric has Army drills this weekend so it would have had to be someone I trusted to stay with the kids and keep them safe all night on Saturday, too.

I suppose I can just use this time to study more and then take my opponents by storm in Hudson, Ohio next weekend. Still...I hate cancelling a show.

Sitting here in Concourse C of Detroit's Metro Airport, I've got some time to reflect on this weekend's Scrabble tournament in Pontiac, Michigan. Two words come to mind:

Study more.

Really, though. I'm happy with this weekend. The very, very, very best part was getting to spend some time with people I'd gotten to know a little bit before, getting to know them better, and meeting lots of new people. The second best part was getting somewhere around 60 points added to my rating. The award for "most instantly gratifying" goes to the poker tournament on Saturday night (in which yours truly won back her $10 entry fee plus $60 more).

At 20 games, this tournament was far too long to detail here. In the end, I came out with 7 wins and 13 losses. And my point spread was so far down it had to reach up to tie its shoes. (Point spreads don't really have shoes so don't hurt your brain trying to picture that.) Okay, so...this result was more than the Magitastic Intrawebs Site predicted for me.

Now we have a little more experience under our belts. Now we get ready for the Fenton, MI tournament coming up in two weeks. (Actually, it's two one-day tournaments, one on Saturday and one on Sunday.) How do we get ready? Study...more.

Peace out.

P.S. Thanks again to my two sponsors for this weekend's trip.
Their contributions bought either my dinner on
Friday night or all three of my lunches at the Mexican place.
Mmmmm!!!

WOOO HOOO!!!

My InBox this morning had a nice surprise in it! Someone...a Scrabble player...a Scrabble blog reader...a very nice person...was the very first to click on the donate button. My Scrabble Tour now has at least one benefactor!

So this is a whole new thing. I mean, should I get t-shirts made? Should I write this (and any subsequent) sponsor's name on the bottom of each of my score sheets? Should I give a "shout out" if there are any photo ops or radio interviews?

No...no...no (she says, slowly and thoughtfully shaking her head back and forth). We don't embarrass the benefactors. We accept their kindness with quiet grace and don't force unwanted publicity upon them.

So, thank you, brother or sister whose name shall not be spoken here. Your small act and your few (but precious) bucks have earned you a place in (my) Scrabble history.

If you don't want me to put your name on a t-shirt either, you can also donate. Gracias!!

I try not to focus too much on upcoming trips or other fun events very far in advance. It's just that I get so worked up and excited about things. If I start my mental countdowns too early, I just wear myself out...and time seems to drag on and on and on.

But now...I can say that in about three days and 20 hours from this posting, I'll be sitting somewhere around Luna Pier, Michigan, having dinner and drinks with my dear friend, Spinster Girl (a recent transplant to MI). I would be e-mailing her personally about starting my countdown, but I don't want to distract her from her Official Duties, i.e., buying vodka and various things to put with vodka, finding us a great place to eat, etc.

THEN, in four-and-a-half days, I'll be sitting in Pontiac, Michigan, trying my very best to kick off my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour with a few wins!! V-I-C-T-O...oh, nevermind. I think you get it.

SO...tonight I worked pretty late so I can cut out early on Friday, tomorrow I'll be heading out for dinner and drinks with a couple of friends, Wednesday and Thursday I'll be getting ready for the trip and spending time with those...ohhhh...what are they called?!?! Oh, yeah...Kids!!

The week will likely fly by! Between work, gathering my bathroom items in bottles no larger than three ounces, and those kids I mentioned, I won't have time for time to come to a standstill because I'm so excited! And YET...I'm so excited!! It all makes perfect sense if you stand back about 6 feet and unfocus your eyes.

And, you know, I think both events might produce some pictures and entries for this here Scrabble blog/human interest blog. I can't guarantee anything particularly artful and/or incriminating, but one can always hope.

My non-Scrabble-playing friends might be surprised to know that, for five days in late July, 662 people gathered in Orlando for the 2008 National Scrabble Championship. For my friends who do Scrabble, you probably already know the players from our region who made the trip and the huge commitment in time, energy, and resources. To the Scrabblers I've had the pleasure of spending some time with, sharing some meals with, or just sharing some of this here blog with, congratulations for simply enduring:

(If I got your stats wrong, please e-mail me. I may not sleep but I do get a little...unfocused at 1:00 a.m.)

	STEVE GROB, Fenton, MI Steve finished 43rd in Division 1 (the top division which had 103 players) with a win/loss of 15-13. Steve writes a little in his blog and the general consensus among those who are in the know and have a sense of humor is that he should write more. I realize it's probably difficult for him to find time, though, because he's a stay-at-home dad and spends hours making flowery wreaths for his hair.
	DAN STOCK is the ever-patient, frequent tournament director from Rocky River, OH. Out of the 134 players in Division 2, Dan came in 16th with a record of 17-11. Dan is seen here wearing a purple shirt but only because he couldn't find one that had a green collar on one side.
	JEFF CLARK (Linden, MI) placed 24th in Division 2 (134 players) with a win/loss of 16.5-11.5. Jeff often finds himself teamed with Dallas Johnson (below) in the task of getting women to pay attention during poker games (after Scrabble tournaments). Is that why they call him "Mr. Lucky?" Hhh.
	GARY PERMAN, Blairsville, PA Gary hails from my husband's ancestral home of Allegheny County (Pittsburgh), PA and I got to talk with him some during dinner at Bluegrass Kitchen after the April tournament here in Charleston. Gary completed the tournament with a great record of 18-10 gaining him a 12th place finish in Division 3 (133 players). (I love the Pittsburgh accent!!)
	LINDA HOGGATT, Blachester, OH Linda is fun, not too serious, and appropriately loud when there's not a Scrabble game going on (a super combination). She brought home a 37th place finish in Division 3 (133 players) with 16 wins and 12 losses.
	KEN DUTCH is the director from what is essentially our "sister" club in Lexington, KY. He, too, came out with a winning record of 15-13, putting him in the 42nd spot (out of 133) in Division 3. Ken has given me some good Scrabble tips and is not, as his profile picture would imply, blurry.
	KATYA LEZIN Out of 113 players in Division 4, Katya finished with a win-loss of 15-13 gaining her the 45th place. She's a public-interest attorney in Charlotte, NC and still finds time to volunteer as a School Scrabble sponsor. I'd like to find time to read her book.
	DALLAS JOHNSON (Stow, OH) is also a director and, no, he probably doesn't think it's funny if you ask him if he's from Tex...uh...Akron. When Dallas isn't helping Jeff try to keep poker games moving along, he's winning 15 out of 13 games in the NSC and finishing 48th out of 116 in Division 4.
	JOYCE STOCK (Rocky River, OH) recently had her first first place finish in a tournament!! In the NSC, she placed 41st out of 96 in Division 5, with a win-loss of 14.5 games to 13.5 games.
	CECELIA HUBER (Cleveland, OH) Cecelia wrapped up her week with 15 wins and 13 losses, gaining her the 63rd spot (out of 96) in Division 5. She recently raised $2,000 for the 2008 Cleveland Breast Cancer 3-Day walk by raffling off five custom Scrabble boards! Oh...and she walked 60 miles in three days for that same event!!
	NOAH LIEBERMAN (Charlotte, NC) Noah is one of the up-and-coming young players gaining momentum in the Scrabble world. Prior to the NSC, his rating had gone up almost exactly 300 points in the last twelve months. In the NSC's Division 5 (96 players), he finished 78th with 12 wins and 16 losses.
	JOHN SPANGLER is an attorney from Versailles, KY. He wrapped up the NSC with 38th place out of 80 in Division 6 and a win-loss of 14.5-13.5. John has a booklet of every person he's ever played in a Scrabble tournament...so don't go trying any of your old tricks on him.
	HANNAH LIEBERMAN (Charlotte, NC) was featured in the Sunday Gazette-Mail's photo spread of the April tournament here in Charleston and she's well on her way to gaining the experience to be a contendah. In the NSC, she gave some very experienced players cause for concern, winning 12 games and losing 16, netting the 62nd place out of 80 players in Division 6.

You all played Scrabble for five straight days, and you survived! Barring any change in plans, I'll probably see many of you at next year's Player's Championship in Dayton. Until then, I hope to see you in West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Michigan!!

Tomorrow will find me in my usual spots for a weekday, perched in an unhealthy posture on the very edge of my office chair working, marching up and down the street to our main office, or simply darting over to Grasshopper's office to have some fun giving him a hard time. (Grasshopper is what I call our youngest associate. And, yes, I march and dart but rarely stroll.) A number of lucky Scrabble players, though, will be starting the five-day National Scrabble Championship in Orlando. (An interesting number, in fact: 666.)

Although I won't be playing in Orlando, I do have some big plans coming up. I've been studying and studying and studying since I made my commitment to my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour. SOON, it will be August. Before August is over, I'll be on an airplane (courtesy of my husband's new airline job), headed to Detroit. The Labor Day Weekend tournament in Pontiac, Michigan will kick off the big, seven-tournament series I'll complete between August and December. The Rocky River, Ohio tournament officially marked the start of my super fun half-year, but the fall and winter tournaments will be much more concentrated.

But there's a big bonus, you know. Three out of the eight tournaments are in the Detroit area. That means I get to spend a few fun Friday nights with my awesome friend, Spinster Girl. She just moved to Michigan and I can't wait to see her again!!!

Remember my big defeat in Pittsburgh? For a frustrated moment after that, I thought maybe my adventures in Scrabble should be over. Then I thought, "Over?!? Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor?!?!" And I've been studying like crazy since then. True to my mood swinging ways, right about the same time, I was struck with an idea to undertake a big series of Scrabble tournaments, dubbing it my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour.

And so the tour (with a shiny new schedule) has begun. The first official (and, so far the shortest scheduled), stop on The Tour was, in my opinion...a success!! DAH-DA-DA-DAH!!! (It was in Rocky River, Ohio, by the way.) I got what I basically wanted, which was to do better than I did in Pittsburgh. Sure...that wasn’t hard to do. If I had done worse than I had in Pittsburgh, it’s highly likely that I would have chucked this laptop out the hotel window (along with all the other contents of my room).
But what I did do was see improvement. In contrast to my previous 2/3 loss ratio (in PGH), I ended up at 4 wins and 3 losses with a positive spread of 110 points. PLUS, I had my first 500-point game (a 525 against the guy who ended up coming in second in my division), AND that landed me the prize for high win, AND I got the prize for high loss (with a 369-point game). Here's a picture of the board after the 525 game:

This weekend, someone challenged me to do 20 tournaments in one year. I said, "No way!" Now that I look at my schedule, though...counting this weekend, there's there's already like 9 on there, with eight being in 2008. Heck, I dunno. Maybe it'll happen. There are already several other tournaments I'll attend in the next twelve months that aren't even on the calendar yet.

SO...we'll see! This weekend was a good start! And a very special thanks to my club members, my Scrabble friends, and my everyday friends for their support in my Scrabble endeavors. It means the world to me. And, uhh...thanks to my husband. Although he continues to make fun of me for being a Scrabble geek, he still lets me Scrabble it up pretty much all I want.

Oh, the universe is definitely leaning toward my 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble tour becoming reality. In fact, with the addition of the Players Championship in Dayton, Ohio next year, maybe my tour will be extended! What better way to end a year-long Scrabble extravaganza than with a five-day Scrabble marathon?

Guess what else? Eric has taken a part-time job that seems to secure this destiny of mine. He's going to be working with an airline while he finishes up his degree...meaning that I can fly for free to wherever the airline flies (and at a reduced cost on other airlines). Now guess where the airline's nearest hub is from Charlie West? DE-troit, Michigan! Detroit (and its surrounding area) seems to be the Scrabble capitol of my (regional) universe. At right about six hours away, though, it sits on the very border of the area I had been looking at for my Scrabble tour. Now, though, a trip to Detroit is likely to take more like an hour-and-a-half and, at most, cost me a rental car for less than the gas money and not nearly as much time. Although airline employees and their families fly standby, CRW is not the busiest airport in the world and I'd have three chances to make a flight any given day (and could zip back down the hill if I had to wait four hours for the next flight). The worst-case scenario: I get in my car at 4:00 in the afternoon (right before the last flight of the day leaves) and drive the same six hours I would have in the first place.

And since Eric's new job is so perfect for me, I'm thinking about foregoing the Durham tournament in favor of South Lyon, Michigan in October. The Durham tournament would offer a few more games and the chance for some trivia or poker after-hours, but...as you are well-aware by now, the South Lyon tournament would give me a chance to fly instead of drive. And that would put me at being away from home no more than two weekends in a row (instead of three).

So...my shiny, new preliminary schedule goes a little something like this:

Rocky River, Ohio on July 12th;
Pontiac, Michigan from August over Labor Day weekend;
Fenton, Michigan on September 13th and 14th;
Hudson, Ohio on September 20th to the 21st;
South Lyon, Michigan on October 11th and 12th;
Elyria, Ohio on October 18th and 19th;
Lexington, Kentucky on the first weekend in November;
Strongsville, Ohio on December 6th and 7th; and,
the Players Championship in Dayton, Ohio from August 1st through the 5th, 2009.

Of course, if I make a big year of it, there will probably be other tournaments from January 2009 until August. And I guess, if I get that used to playing a lot of Scrabble, it will probably go on from there! If that be the case, then I sure hope to see some results from all this studying!!

Want to make a contribution to my
semi-worldwide Scrabble tour?
Great!
Just click here!!

After my dear friend Martha introduced me to Scrabble, I spent a year or so being fairly so-so about it. I learned the basic words, went to a few Scrabble club meetings, and played in the April 2007 tournament in Charleston, WV. Somewhere between April and fall 2007, my interest in the game got stronger and, by late last year, I was excitedly awaiting the chance to travel to tournaments. So far this year, I've attended four tournaments. And it was going pretty well...until Pittsburgh, which I blogged about here and here. Don't get me wrong. I love Pittsburgh and the people there are some of my favorites in the Scrabble world!! They're all very friendly and say "dahntahn" and "youins."

But Pittsburgh was hard on me. I did so, so poorly. On one hand, it seemed like I was drawing really bad letters the whole time. On the other hand, a good player should be able to work with those a little better than I did.

So...NOW...I've decided to step it up a notch. (Well, many notches, if possible.) With the help and advice, of our local club's loyal director, I've started studying Scrabble words (every day). In order to be well-rounded about it, I've been studying using a three-pronged approach: anagram recognition, word list recall, and flash card study of bigger words. (I bet the non-Scrabblers out there didn't know people actually study this stuff, huh?) Logically, investing this effort into a game I've grown to love (if I'm not hating it at that second), should yield some better play. I should be able to survive the "bad racks" a little better and hopefully play more bingos to give myself a better buffer.

And it's worth the investment in time. Scrabble is about the only thing I do for fun anymore. I have three young children and a demanding job. The past year, since my husband's work injury, there haven't been a lot of extra funds to invest in recreation. But I don't believe you can stay sane, though, unless you have some fun now and then. So, since we're moving to a house that's more affordable (slightly less on the rent and fairly lower on the utilities), I've made a commitment to myself to really go all out this summer and fall traveling to Scrabble tournaments.

Pretty much anything within about a six-hour drive is my target. Based on the schedule right now, that puts me heading to:

• Rocky River, Ohio on July 12th;


• Pontiac, Michigan from August over Labor Day weekend;


• Fenton, Michigan on September 13th and 14th;


• Hudson, Ohio on September 20th to the 21st;


• Elyria, Ohio on October 18th and 19th;


• Lexington, Kentucky on the first weekend in November;


• Strongsville, Ohio on December 6th and 7th; and,


• Maybe Durham, North Carolina on October 24th though the 26th.

So, yeah, that's a little more than one a month for the rest of the year. Why? I don't know. Because I've committed myself to putting in a huge effort all around (even if it means traveling on the cheap)? Because we've had a tough year all around? Because I've become obsessed? Because I'm a really nice person and I'm giving myself permission?

Whatever the reason, I decided to do it! My 2008 Whirlwind Scrabble Tour!!! Then I figured, if a New Yorker can use the Internet to get strangers to pay off her $20,000 in shopping debt, maybe people would be happy to contribute to my worthy cause!! What's the benefit?? An investment in hope and my effort and helping someone who has, in the last 36 months, spent 26 months standing in the background of her husband's military service, his dedication as a firefighter, and his subsequent injury. The second half of 2008 is going to be my (half) year!!

So, anyone who feels as excited about my whirlwind tour as I feel about my tour, or who just wants to see if I can pull off this studying=winning thing, or who just figures "what the heck!"...then you may ask yourself, "Why don't I click here?" No contribution is too small (or big...heh). Live vicariously through me as I throw my responsibilities to the wind (except for the studying thing)!!

(A huge "thank you" to Chris. Chris has been one heck of a pal not just since he came to my birthday dinner, but especially this last week. Of course, feel free to link to this post, too!)