Fun and Games Friday: Points Edition

There’s nothing like Pesach to get you into the competitive spirit.

After all, no matter where you turn, you’re sure to hear someone asking:

1. How early did you start your cleaning?
2. How much did you procrastinate before you started your cleaning?
3. How late did your Seder end?
4. How quickly did you get all your Pesach stuff put away after the chag?
5. And so on…

But nothing says competition like a well-played game of… Points.

{notes the readers’ blank stares and hastens to explain}

Points, my friends, is a world-famous virtually-unknown-outside-the-extended-Shiputzim-family, challenging not-overly-exciting game of wits of chance, which pits sibling against sibling and parent against offspring.

For the uninitiated – i.e. those of you who aren’t related to me – here’s a brief lowdown of the game:

The object is to meet as many of your acquaintances as possible during a given outing.

For each person you meet, you get a point - hence, the name – and the winner is the competitor who has the most points at the end of the outing.

Yes, it really IS that simple. :-)

But there are several rules:

1. In order to get the point, you must actually speak to the acquaintance. Nodding or waving – without so much as a quick “hello” – doesn’t count.
2. You must have met the acquaintance at least one time before. (Online meetings are acceptable.) In other words, striking up a conversation with a total stranger may be sociable, but it won’t get you any points.
3. If you and another member of your party bump into someone whom you both know, the first one to speak to the acquaintance gets the point.

Needless to say, Points can be played anytime and anywhere, but to maximize your points, check out Yerushalayim – especially the Old City - during Chol Hamo’ed.

It’s like, well, a mecca (pardon the expression :-)) for Points players…

!שבת שלום ומבורך