tej's

a very sprawling game with lengthy words (and a lot of luck for me).  Darrell had two very nice extensions:  S(LICE)+SINE and (WEEP)Y+OI(L)Y.  other good plays included EMOTION covering two double-word scores, QUEER with 3xQ, 3xORDEAL+LAX, EH+HOME, and the bingo ARTSIER.  i was right that SIZY is a word, but wrong about the definition:  "viscid."

tej's

high-scoring plays in this very close game included 2x(ZINC), 2x(YIP)+IF, 3x(EDEN)+ET+DE+ED, 3x(OFTEN) with the F doubled, 2x(JOY)+JO, and the bingos sWATTER and MUTInIED.  SHUL is acceptable (meaning synagogue, plural SHULS or SHULN), but SHULL* is not.

tej's

Karen made a good showing despite monumental impediments foisted on her by cruel chance.  she also generously believed me when i was pretty sure CHUD* was a real word (um...).  the highlight was when she pointed out after i played HASTY that with the S and Y i could have done (HERE)SY plus (OOzE)S.  i got one bingo, REtINAS, plus massive points for 3x(JO & OF)+OF and 2x(QUIZ), as well as 3x(HASTY).

tej's

despite early portents from the scrabble gods in Darrell's favor, fate delivered unbeatable letter combinations onto my rack very handily, allowing bingos RODENTS and sTRICTe(R), plus the ever-potent EX-XI combo.  lessons learned:  GOREY* is not spelled that way, and if challenged on the definition to any scrabble word, your best bet is to say that it's some kind of antelope.

tej's

TANNIN(S) may not have gotten many points, but it's definitely one of the coolest words on this board (along with FEY).  QUIVER was probably the biggest point-getter.  no bingos in this game.  OLEO = "margarine."

some park in palo alto

summer scrabble belongs outdoors.  this was also a very close game, and one that had to be reassembled after the letters were accidentally displaced (which is always a fun memory challenge--and i think we misplaced the EN in the right-most column:  one space higher, perhaps?).  no bingos.  GOOSEY is pretty fun though ("resembling a goose," also spelled GOOSY, with comparative and superlative forms also allowed).  QUINE* is phoney.

picnic table, stanford

i don't remember too much about who played what in this game...  i do remember that we both had some high-scoring plays, but i had a lot of luck, like in the opening play, double-word score FrIEZE with the Z on the double-letter, and then getting those points again when playing the bingo VESTING.  the Z got a lot more play too, extended to ZONE, REZONE, and REZONED.

interestingly, FLEER is not "one that flees," it's a verb meaning "to deride."  also, ARYAN* is not acceptable (i think it's proper).

Karen's

Karen finally met a batch of letters she couldn't quite overcome with her great talents.  not that that stopped her from playing EX(T)OL on a triple word, the bingo COMmENT, everyone's favorite IOTA, and against all odds, the splendid vowel dump RADIO(E)D.  she was rather plagued with vowels most of the game.  on the other hand, i had the most cooperative tiles i've seen in a while.  one bingo ((E)QUALING), and the other three triple-word scores, including a nice compound play of SING-(BONE)S-(Q)I-(U)N-(ZA)G.

Kevan's

close game!  we got a little constrained geometrically, but managed to play some lovely words nonetheless.  i liked ERMInE and TUREEn very much, as well as GIRT and of course YOGI.  been a while since i've seen ZAX.

tej's

we both got bingos (KK:  TURNOUT, tej:  ENTI(T)LeS), but Karen definitely kept her momentum going, and taught me a new word:   PRIVET, an ornamental shrub.  for 36 points, no less.

tej's

kind of a low-scoring game for Karen and me, but picked up pace toward the end.  no bingos, but Karen as usual played very consistently, and i got a lot of points for EXI(T)S.  WEAVY* turns out not to be acceptable.

tej's

Dad got a half-point bonus for making a box with the word LAVE; he also gets kudos for SIRLOIN.  i think FINNed and its adjacent R were originally placed one square lower.  i bingoed with (E)DITIONS.

tej's

a lovely sprawling shape.

Karen:  CORKED, GOBY (a small fish), QUAlM, bingo INTERNED.
tej:  CORDON, XI-IRK, VEINY, bingos FOLIATED and DISSOLvE.
we were wrong:  VOG*, FRAU*, SATAN*.

tej's

close game.  Karen rocked out once more with two bingos (FLoRINS and RAVINEs), plus a nice play through two existing words to make CA(N)O(E)R.  Jay contributed such satisfying words as JIBE, OCTAL, and SOMA.  i had a good find in BOREAL, a bingo with STEELIN(G), and lucked out with a place to play QUID on a triple word score, but missed a way to play the bingo FLOATED (making FE on the end of sURE), opting instead for the low-scoring DEFLAT(E).

town & country center, palo alto

a lovely non-competitive game.  the most notable play is probably the bingo PR(E)TTIED, though as a neuroscientist i have to draw attention to AXON as well.  and i guess as a scrabbler i also have a responsibility to plug the use of SuQ.

tej's

a new high score for me, although it was won with a phoney bingo, ARSIDES*.  as in gallium arside, right?  well, no.  apparently it's gallium arsenide.  though according to google, at least 92 people other than me have made the same mistake, even on websites with such authoritative domain names as sciencemadness.org.  at any rate, Karen didn't challenge, so with my other bingo of SEEmiNG, double-counted triple-letter X, and other general good luck (i had both blanks and 3/4 Ses), i cleaned up.  Karen was no slouch herself, playing crazy words like AIOLI.  my favorite was when she turned GAVE into GAVEL to make HOVEL, which she later turned into SHOVEL.

tej's

Michael pulled a game-ending bingo with DAnDIER, leaving Karen and me with full racks (such a dirty trick).  Karen got OXIDE on a triple word score, and TELIC on another one (directed or tending to a definite goal, à la telomeres).  there's also a YAK.

http://www.thepixiepit.co.uk/scrabble/index.htm

brilliant score for my mentor Daniel, the highest so far in this scrabble photo journal.  he got off to a good start with his opening bingo FATTENS, and continued in that fashion with the triple-triple tour de force, A(T)TENDER (one that attends):  140 points.  in the mean time, he had solid plays every turn.  my game was good but much spottier, anchored by the two bingos SLIV(E)rED and (R)ESPRAIN*—which Daniel luckily didn't challenge—TWIRLY-(B)Y, and JO-JOE, a double-counted triple letter score on J.

tej's

this was a nice game.  notable plays:  QUAYS-(TIT)S and MINK (triple word, double letter on K) from Kevan, bingos DEFIANT and BIASING from me, and VELLUM, PRIoN, DRENCH and CLARION from Karen.  CUVEE*, a wine term referring to "a batch of wine usually held in a single tank or large cask," is not acceptable.  We were also shocked (shocked!) to discover that the scrabble dictionary does not contain BLAVE*, which as everyone knows means "to bluff."

tej's

good words:  APEX, THIRTY, SEWER, and of course, BONERS.  note, Kevan's triple-word entry at 3 o'clock is not MAFIa, but MAFIc, "pertaining to minerals rich in magnesium and iron."  i had a dyslexic incident leading me to play MOH*-M(U)-O(N)-H(E), while convinced i had played MHO.  luckily, no one challenged, and then someone was able to play one of my top two favorite strabble words, EMU.

tej's

any game's a good game that includes YETI.  i did well early on with ANNOY, GRAPH, and the bingo SNACKINg, but Karen, as always, pulled ahead with consistently creative play, especially DEATH and VAT-V(EX).  she also let me get away with OTIE*.

Mom&Dad's:  burnsville, mn

i didn't witness this game but greatly enjoyed seeing the result.  SQUINTY, DICKER, WANGLE, CUBIT, PHI…  i am so proud.

the chatterbox:  mpls, mn

a nice game, with several missing tiles (notably the Q).  Daniel bingoed with DESIrEs, but i had managed to pull ahead with a lucky opening for JE(A)NS on a double-word with J on triple-letter.  Peter did nicely with YEW-Y(AW)-E(T), among others.  FEM-(I)F-(E)M was also a high-scoring play.  note this game also contains not only EMU, but also IOTA.  fabulous.

Mom&Dad's:  burnsville, mn

some nice words from mom (RABID, TIARA, QuIP) and Dad (PISH (to express contempt), DOWRY, and the devious phoney, FOVATE*).  after failing to place GERMANE, i was lucky to get the bingo GROANER in on the next round after dumping an E and M on my favorite scrabble word, EMU.

tej's

Karen was on fire this game.  i think my favorite of hers was ETHANE, though extending QuADS to SQUADS was also pretty.  sadly, DUH* is not acceptable.

Karen's

kudos to Shad for playing while delirious, and still contributing jems like ZINC, TURD, and NEEP (a turnip!).  my contributions were the always-a-barrel-of-laughs YETI and the AKIN-A(X)-(LEE)K combo.  Karen had the game locked up from her bingo first turn, TREAD(I)nG, which she later extended to RETREADInG to get the triple word score.  GOBY = a small fish.

tej's

a fun game, despite my missing the obvious second move of appending a P onto Leslie's opening bingo, ROOFIng (as pointed out to me by my opponents).  no one could overcome Leslie's opening lead, though Karen came close (and played MESA--a very lovely word).  i enjoyed the extension of CABS into SCABS in order to play DENSER on the triple word.  a RUNNEL is a small stream; leave it to those geological types to know such things.

tej's

thanks to Karen for keeping me company while i recover from tonsillectomy.  her most fun play was definitely KITTEN, though i was also a big fan of FENNEL, and her casual creation of the adverb ABED in order to play ALIGN.  i got a bingo with MARINES, but was stumped with the rack [] [] A D O S S on a very full board, so i settled for DOSSieR.  random info:  TING is a verb.  and i like the word LIVID.

http://www.thepixiepit.co.uk/scrabble/index.htm

three bingos:  bLASTED (Daniel), ENTERED and CLARINET (me).  kudos to Daniel for FAVES, as well as the AI-T and ZA-S hooks needed for his clever bingo.  i had a good find in YET(I), also making HEY, ERE, and HET.

tej's

it's pretty amazing how Karen can still give someone a run for his graduate stipend even after he gets a triple-triple bingo (INsTATES, 122 points).  it's also amazing how she simulaneously made (FILM)Y and GALAXY.  close game.

METH is good.  CIN* is not (sorry Karen!).  i was probably thinking of CINE (a motion picture).  it's kind of embarrassing still not to know my threes, after actually spending time studying them.

http://www.thepixiepit.co.uk/scrabble/index.htm

first completed online game with Daniel (at thepixiepit).  Daniel's on a roll.  one bingo each:  MORALEs (mine) and TANKErS (his).  i also faked a bingo with the plausible-sounding ENTRIVE* which put me back into contention late in the game (along with catching the (BINGE)R extension with a parallel WAR on a double-letter).  a favorite of Daniel's plays was SAG, making three additional words using both back and front extensions.

davis square, somerville MA

fun plays included LUAUS and TYPO from Kim, and (EM)U+RUIN from Andrew.  with a four-player game my bingo-seeking strategy doesn't often pay off, but in this case on the last round of the game Kim gave me a perfect opportunity by playing QuID, which i could extend to S(QuID) and make STRINGS, taking me from last place to first, also ending the game.

davis square, somerville MA

reunion game with my original scrabble guru.  huzzah.  Daniel knew i was fishing for bingos so he kept the board pretty closed down, hence the great diagonal swath.  i managed to break it open with the bingo TINDERS (using the not well known but quite useful SAL), and later came up with AIrLINES, but it wasn't enough to beat Daniel's consistent high scoring plays.

this is when i learned that 4th edition OSPD is out, including five new two-letter words:  FE, KI, OI, QI, and ZA.

tej's

another super lucky game (for me).  Karen had some nice plays with JUTE, YETI, and ADDUCE.  AORTA, HOMAGE, and everyone's favorite BRAIN came from Saul.  i lucked out with a bingo on my first turn, QUEEREST over two double-word scores, and i got another on my last turn, DeTAILS, which finished the game and incurred substantial penalties on my opponents.

HAR* is not acceptable, so my high score for playing (A)IRY was ill-gotten.

tej's

Leslie had a good find with FOI(L)ER* (though shockingly, this is not an acceptable play--neither is REFOIL*) and Karen with LOC(H).  GENES was very high-scoring, making a total of 5 words.  bingo:  FAT(T)eNS (tej).  we also played one more game, which should not be viewed without adult supervision.

Karen's

good plays here.  one bingo:  S(W)ELLING (tej).  i can't remember exactly how it went down in the upper right corner, but the past-tense formations of HAZE and BIKE worked well.  i'm a big fan of the word BRINIER.

tj's

inaugural game at my new studio.  and a good game:  i had two bingos (RENAILS and ATONERs) and Karen rocked my new house with DEGAS, BUTYL, and the very high-scoring ZeBU.

Corey's and Tristram's

a game of phoneys (QUEEF*, VACULAR*, and JIVIER*).  they shouldn't have let me get away with JIVIER*.

Corey's and Tristram's

great game, and very close.  wonderful plays.  one bingo apiece:  first uNAWARE from tj (later extended to (uNAWARE)S by Tris), then INCENSE from Tris.  other great words from Tris:  FOCI, (H)OARDED, ENNUI, and (Z)EBRA.  i'm sorry about WOG (offensive).

Karen's

another lucky game. the availability of F(ETA) for my FAINEST bingo (a standard one from the SATINE stem) was truly beautiful. and then (T)HORNIEr presented itself just a few moves later. meanwhile, Karen gave us gorgeous plays with ABLY-(PART)Y, (KIWI)S-SHY, and B(O)-B(A)STE-(RAZE)S. and Kevan found some very creative words like CONGA and LEAVEN. but two bingos plus three triple word scores--RA(C)ED, OFT, and COR--and lucky X placement took me into the lead.

Karen's

this game had some nice words, but it was kind of a struggle. it rapidly turned into a very crowded board, and we both kept getting unwieldy combinations of tiles, trading in several times. though we did get off to a great start when Karen extended my POCK to (POCK)ETiNG. after that, it was mostly fighting for the other triple word scores. no bingos.

Karen's

this was a fantastic game. Kevan busted major moves with NATAL, TOTEM, and EARBUD*, not to mention ZEE. i had the bingo RETINAs and very fortunate placement on MOOSE. Karen took us to school with QUIP, (O)X/(BO)X, and the best play ever, VIKING. fantastic.

Grandma's

a lucky game, but it turns out i made an embarrassing mistake. i assured a very doubtful audience that KAID* was an acceptable variant of QAID. how wrong i was. luckily for my pride, those weren't points that pushed me over the threshold of victory (that was accomplished by opening bingo of SPONGER, double triple word on (RAIN)Y and JOY, and the L(I)--E(D)--LE(Z) combo). LEZ is considered offensive so it's not in OSPD3, but it's on the tournament list. other notable plays included GHEE (dad), (POND)ING (mom), and AVERT (Peter).

more scrabble sculpture followed this game.

Grandma's

Mom did quite well here with YEAH--double word with H on double letter. Grandma had a great play with THAt, also making BAH and MA. i got INDEX on the triple word score. but Dad really took the cake with SMUTTY and (ZEST)Y. UG* is a phoney.

Grandma's

Dad had a good play in DUPLEX. i can't remember whether it was Mom or Peter who got the (ADVISE)E extension. i won with the bingo VARIANTS and JOB/B(A) on the triple word.

Grandma's

fun plays included DORY and OZONE from Dad, and AUK and DIVA from Grandma. i lucked out with the bingo DANGERS, double-counted triple letter X, and two triple word scores.

Karen's

GNOME and ZAX were both fun plays from Karen, who also had a lovely extension on S(PAWN). good spotting of (C)OU(R)T--by Dominic? i had a rough time again getting a bingo together, and finally got ENTRIES, but too late to do anything other than catch up.

Erin's and Namiko's

any game that involves MUON (Sam) is a good game. extra special kudos to Namiko, who pointed out the FI(LAMENTS) extension to Sarah. note to self:  bingo-hunting in a 6-person game requires a great deal of luck (see below). in this rematch i had a highly bingo-prone rack and kept playing single tiles, only to draw less useful ones.

Erin's and Namiko's

finally inaugurated my new scrabble board, after thanksgiving dinner. i got lucky with the bingo RELATES. other good plays included LOONEY (Erin) and QU(ALM) extended by Namiko.

Karen's

i had another lucky game, being able to bingo with (S)TINGERS and having decent places to get rid of the J, Q, and Z as soon as i got them. Karen was considerably less lucky, but bingoed with STEERIN(G), making (EPIC)S at the same time.

POORI and LAKER are both good.

Karen's

inaugural game with Karen's new board. very close! as Karen is pointing out in the picture, she would have won if she hadn't gotten stuck with the Z at the end. favorite plays here were CAVIAR and WENCH (2xword with W on a 2xletter) by Karen, and GLIB by tj. one bingo, SEGmENTS by tj.

september 9, 2004

Daniel's James's and Lindsay's place

my last game in massachusetts, this was a close one right up to the end. bingos from Daniel and me (RaTTLERS and ANTIRED, respectively), and a near-bingo from Ethan (STONING). it was a nice way to wrap up one chapter of my scrabble adventures.

september 3, 2004

Daniel's James's and Lindsay's place

first game in quite a while! a good way to break in Daniel's new kitchen (and new roommates). i had a very lucky game, with two bingos that materialized with practically no effort: AMUsING and SECLUDE. other fine plays included HOURLY from Lindsay, SEIZES from James, and SCREaM and LEGIT from Daniel. AFRONT* is not good.

august 11, 2004

Andrew's.

oy. a great start turned out to be a pretty terrible game. we quite effectively sealed off the upper left quadrant. when we finally had bingos, there was no place to play them.

august 4, 2004

tj's.

not our best. one bingo (tj: THREATEN). James had good plays with ZITI and VIDEO, and Daniel pulled ahead with EQuAL and SPIRE pluralizing CHIT. we'll do better next time.

28 july, 2004

tj's.

3 bingos here, two of them rather spectacular: MINOTAuR for Andrew, and TRAsHIER for James (through the E of VOLE, pluralizing MINOTAuR). by comparison my NATIVES was quite mundane, but in conjunction with some other good plays (especially FINS off of ADIEU on the 3W) it won me the game.

21 july, 2004

Andrew's place.

a pretty low-scoring game. only one bingo (tj: REACToR), which luckily for me came at the end of the game, so i got points for Daniel's and Andrew's full racks. nicely placed SUQ from Andrew, a lovely REP-POUND-ODD rectangle completed by Daniel, and i learned the word GELT.

17 july, 2004

parking garage at kendall, followed by an mit green.

James played a great game. two bingos: SEDATING and CLINGER. also STUCCO and the charming double-EKE in the middle of the board. Daniel almost kept pace for a while with INWArDS. my rack management failed utterly.

7 july, 2004

Daniel's

James: FeTTERED. Daniel: DILUtING. tj: RETIMES. COSI* is a phoney.

i had a good single-turn comeback going out with DILATES (102 points), but not enough. lost a challenge against Daniel's PINGERS (devices for producing pulses of sound). Danny boy had a 2-bingo game (PINGERS, dETAINED), pretty admirable for only 5 turns. James was closing in with ZONE on a 3W, and XI-XU with X on a 2L.

very close game. great locale. and some tasty pears. what could be better? my first time playing ENTASIA, quite a choice bingo, but not enough to overcome Daniel's sheer orthographic acumen (and many Ses).

last game at Andrew's current abode, and a big welcome back to scrabble regular Daniel. good game. we had an early bingo from Andrew (BaNISHES), and an X on a double-counted triple letter score (Daniel). i was lucky again, with no bingos but averaging close to 27 points per turn: my favorite was THAW, also making PIT and ETH, with the T on a double word.

Andrew: CUD and YAWNED. James: TANGELO and a very nice play making REGS, REX and THEIRS. tj: another lucky 2-bingo game for me (VIBRATED and ISOtONE). a nice finishing touch was QUIT on double word with the Q on double letter. it should be noted that James passed up a higher-scoring play in order to make TANGELO--what a trooper.

a great opening bingo from James (TUGBOAT), who also played DEWY and DORK. Rachel wins the title of fastest scrabble player in the west and also mad props for JETE. my rack management combined with tremendous luck to get two bingos: AERIEST and EASIeST.

listen, children: OAR is a verb.

this board has a nice meandering shape. plus the word SOT. i think this game was the start of my serious attempts to rack-manage.

26 december

Grandma's dining room