Monday's Weekend Recap... (and how to play Nickels)

We had a great weekend with Joe feeling well enough to get out and about and enjoy himself! Praise God!  Friday night we went to the clubhouse to play Nickels.  At the end of this post, I will let you know how to play Nickels... or at least how we play it here.  Several people have asked in comments about how to play.  There are no instructions online that I could find so you will have to take my word for it.

Saturday morning, we got up earlier than usual so we could go downtown to Art Crawl.  This year there were 73 artists in our downtown's 'central park' called Munn Park. My friend and former co-worker, Ellen, started it about 6-7 years ago and it grows bigger each year. She does an amazing job with it.  I haven't been able to go, because of all the walking, for the last three years.  Joe and I both did great this year walking two blocks from our parking place and seeing more than half of the artists' booths.  We saw old friends, former coworkers, and had such a good time.  God is good!

Friend and artist, Meredith Pope.

Friends and former coworkers at the Museum,

Madison, Marilyn, and Ellen (seated and who organizes this each year).

Kids having fun making art with chalk.

And now, for Nickels...

Sorry for the glare, but this is the "card" we play nickels on.

Each person has a card in front of them.  Two people share a cup (not seen here) and you need about $2.00 worth of nickels to start with, and two dice.

Everyone rolls the dice and the person with the highest number goes first.  It moves around the table to the left.  If you roll 5, you put a nickel on the #5.  I had a 5, a 6, a 9, and a 12, as you can see.  If you roll a 7, you have to take one of your numbers off the card and put it in the cup.  You don't want to roll a 7!!  If you don't have any numbers covered yet and you roll a 7, you just take one of your other nickels and put it in the cup.  (And everyone starts by putting one nickel in the cup.)  The person who covers all their numbers first wins all the nickels in everyone's cups.  Then you start again.  The more people you have and the longer you keep playing, the more nickels in the cups!  If I roll a 5, for instance, and already have a nickel on my 5, the next person to my left who needs a five, gets to cover their 5, then that person rolls his/her dice (so might cover two numbers with that one turn).  That's when it starts getting fun. If you have a good crowd (and we do!) it gets loud and funny and the game gets fast.  If I only need one number to win and someone rolls my number and they don't need it for their own card, and no one to their left needs it for theirs, I get to cover my last number and we split the nickels.  I will say that I had the best night ever in the two years we have been playing. I won three games on my own and split three games. Unheard of for me because I rarely win.  People from my table were yelling at Joe (at the other table) to take me home.  It was lots of fun.  I don't expect to win again for at least another month now. LOL

So that is what Nickels is all about.  One of our crowd made the 'cards' and laminated them for us.  We usually have 20 people playing at two tables.  We play from 7:00 to 9:00 every Friday.

Joe and I both have more appointments this week, starting with my  6-month visit with our cardiologist this afternoon.  I will need cardiology clearance for my next knee surgery, in January. Time does not stand still!!

Wishing you a good week ahead!! Thanks for your visit!!

Peace & hugs!!  God bless!!