SITHSISHIT
Yesterday I discovered internet scrabble, and have become an instant addict.
Last night I was playing my friend James, who is a word demon. He was coming up with incredible, elastic efforts in a tribute of language, fluid and lugubrious in their mastery.
I was playing like a hungover exchange student with the bends, flailing away at an iron pinata with a toothpick for a bludgeon.
Can I just say, though, that my letters were ridiculous. By the third move, my letters were
ZLLQMGW
All the while, Jim’s coming up with words like detainer; vibrato; koala.
My efforts?
Mall; ewe; neb.
I don’t even know what a neb is. I looked it up. I cheated. I could be nebbing right now and I wouldn’t even know it.
And circusy.
That’s right. As in “having the characteristics of, or pertaining, to a circus”. I don’t seen the problem.
It’s what you get if you add a y to an existing word made by your far superior opponent. But it is a word, so although the moral high ground was firmly his, the fourteen points were firmly mine.
If I had an r, believe me I would have made vibrator, but look at my letters.
Look at them!
Do you think I enjoy this? I am clever, damn it. I use words like lugubrious. And neb. (Shut it.)
Circusy. If it’s good enough for the French president, it’s good enough for me.
This wouldn’t happen to really clever people. Alan Coren would know what to do. And Sandy Toksvig. Her last name alone is worth 64 points of a double word score.
Jim - I shall have my revenge. Oh yes. You bet your sweet neb I’ll have my revenge.
September 5th, 2007 at 7:31 am
Play Katy and see if she;s really going to kick my ass or not.
September 5th, 2007 at 8:37 am
Oop north, when the - leather - football was heavy with mud and made heading painful, kids used to play with their caps on - but “wi’ t’neb at t’back”. I don’t know what Leyton Hewitt’s excuse is.
September 5th, 2007 at 8:38 am
Using the e of detained, I would play ‘lez’ or ‘mew’. It’s hard to think without the tiles in my hand though.
September 5th, 2007 at 9:26 am
But that’s how you win scrabble, innit? Short words with a high points-to-tile ratio. I used to go out with a man who was a Scrabble demon. He lived in Philadelphia and I lived, well, here, so our relationship consisted mainly of long-distance Scrabble over the internet with accompanying IMs. My vocabulary and anagramming skills were far superior to his and yet he beat me every time because he’d memorised all the two and three letter words, especially those with Q in them.
September 5th, 2007 at 10:17 am
What a qunt
September 5th, 2007 at 11:00 am
“QAT” is a handy one.
September 5th, 2007 at 11:18 am
All good, but the score is 219 to 91.
September 5th, 2007 at 11:43 am
John and I used to play Literati (like Scrabble) online before we met in person. He would woo me with words like pelage and ennui.
September 5th, 2007 at 12:03 pm
Bet he never came up with circusy though. I, on the other hand, would ennui partners with words like woo.
September 7th, 2007 at 4:41 pm
Played Scrabble the other night and had THE most terrible vowel problems. Four turns in a row, nothing but seven sodding vowels. Qunting fucquing daft game …!
September 10th, 2007 at 4:26 pm
that happens to me, without fail i end up with e-e-e-i-i-i-u. meanwhile meesusyan is busy clearing up with triple word, all-letter bonanzas.