Jay's View

When I arrived at The Winnetka Community House last night and saw what I saw was happening, I immediately looked around for Rod Serling or some other indication that I was in The Twilight Zone. It went something like this.

Submitted for your approval . . .

A baker’s dozen of eager players show up at their usual venue on their usual night to play the oldest game of all games, backgammon. But when they arrive at the hallowed halls of The Winnetka Community House it appears they’ve walked into the prop shop of a period piece movie, anything from “Sherlock Holmes” to “Gangs of New York”. They soon learned that it is actually all sorts of furniture and accessories to be featured at the upcoming Antique Show at the Community House. They are further stunned to learn that they have no place in the entire building where they could play. Mild panic sets in for some. Others mill around like deer in headlights. The solution they are told? Head over to a popular local eatery called Fred’s Garage where they can play as long as they order food and tip heavily. And that is where the games begin, in The Twilight Zone.

Doo-doo-doo-doo

Doo-doo doo-doo

Once we made our way to Fred’s Garage we were made aware that we were short on time and had to be done playing and out of there by 10:00. The solution? A night with only 3 matches instead of our usual 4. It turned out to work well for Tournament Director Extraordinaire David Hanold and a visiting Larry Goldstein who tied for first place with equal 3-0, plus 8 records. For me? Not as good. Some guys get all the brakes when they play at Fred’s Garage. But I digress.

And how about Vlad Eydelman? It was great to have him join us once again. He used his matches with us at Fred’s Garage as a tune up for any chouettes or tournaments he might be playing in in the near future. It turned out to be a pretty good tune up as he took 3rd place with a 2-1, plus 8 finish.

But 4th place was shared by Keith Cunliffe and Larry Morris, both finishing with 2-1, plus 5 records. Both players were pretty tired when the evening was over but getting to play at a swanky joint like Fred’s Garage made it all worth it.

Well, the antique show will be a thing of the past next week. I mean, they’re antiques so I would expect nothing less. Join us next week when we expect to actually get to play at The Winnetka Community House. Oh, and don't forget, as per our tradition, we will be playing on November 27, the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving Day, so . . . don’t stay home to baste your turkey. Come to play with us!!

Have a great weekend.

Jay