Creativity is really within us all. Whether it is speaking, writing, designing, creating, or repurposing, each of us has skills that are both valuable and time consuming. But sometimes, particularly during these pandemic times, we just want to block everything out, and just play some cards.
Maybe for you, it is poker, and you end up in a card game or casino. Or perhaps you prefer online card games?
But I prefer old fashioned cards, 52 in a deck plus jokers. Many older card games like Bridge, Canasta, and Pinochle are becoming popular again. I play a version of two hand solitaire, called “Spite and Malice” with my good buddy Kenbob in Las Vegas. We can play a solid two or three days when I visit!
You already know the story. We can play for hours and never get bored. It is also available online, and easily teachable. Best of all, you can play by yourself, with your significant other, or your friends and relatives.
From Board Game Geek: Because we are all familiar with the modern deck of playing cards, a standard deck of Bicycle rider back playing cards seems very “normal” and “traditional” to most of us. But to people of the past, a deck like this is anything but normal! The reality is that playing cards have undergone a radical transformation since their first beginnings several centuries ago. Our modern playing cards evolved into a deck of 52 cards with four suits in red and black and with two Jokers by making a journey that took hundreds of years and involved travelling through many countries. In fact, the most significant elements that shaped today’s deck were produced by the different cultures and countries that playing cards travelled through in order to get to the present day.
The precise origin of playing cards continues to be the subject of debate among scholars, and even the best theories rely more on speculation than proof. There is clear historical evidence that playing cards began to appear in Europe in the late 1300s and early 1400s, but how did they get there? They seem to have come from somewhere in the East, and may have been imported to Europe by gypsies, crusaders, or traders. The common consensus appears to be that an early form of playing cards originated somewhere in Asia, but to be completely honest, we cannot be entirely sure. Paper is fragile and typically does not survive well across the ages, so solid historical evidence is lacking.
So, on this Third Day of Christmas, break out a new deck or decks of cards, and start playing!!! And remember to pay homage to Hoyle. Two decks of Bicycle (brand) cards make a great stocking stuffer!
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