A Conversation

Yesterday Julie and I played in the NAP finals in Lansing. Following is an approximation of the conversation we had afterwards as we sipped on drinks in a sports bar in Grand Rapids.

Julie: It's odd how we played so much better in the afternoon but we got about the same score in the evening, when we made more mistakes.

Me: I think everyone is tired in the evening; we should always play in the evenings at tournaments. We just have to make sure that we're rested.

Julie: Agreed. We did get some gifts.

Me: What about that guy that threw his cards when I went to 3NT and made it?

Julie: What was up with that? Then he acted all friendly.

Me: He was strange. Okay, what should I write about in my blog about this experience?

Julie: What was the theme of the day? What stood out?

Me: I've been thinking about how much I enjoy the process of learning something new. Once I get to a certain point, when I've learned what I wanted to, I quit and go on to something else. It's the journey that most interests me.

Julie: That's very Aquarian. I'm the same way.

Me: But with bridge, I'll never get to that point where I've learned everything I need to know. This may be the activity that I never quit. Even though I want to get better scores and win, I am very aware that where we are right now is a good place to be. One of the A players said that playing at tournaments at the higher levels isn't fun because if you make a mistake, everyone is on it. People expect us to make mistakes.

Julie: But are we getting better?

Me: Yes.

Julie: But how can you tell? There's not a way to measure it. Are we like greyhounds, going in circles chasing a rabbit?

Me: I have a friend who adopted two greyhounds. They couldn't climb stairs and freaked out when they had to walk on different surfaces, like grass.

Julie: Those poor dogs are really abused.

Me: But we're not like greyhounds, we're making progress.

Julie: We would make more progress if we hired someone to teach us and play with us. But that wouldn't be as much fun.

Me: Exactly. That's what I was getting at earlier . . . we're both competitive, but the journey is enjoyable too. But maybe we should see if John and Joanne will play with us again on a Friday.

At about this point others joined us and the conversation turned to other things. Our tournament scores were in the mid-forties, nothing to get excited about but not embarrasing either. Since my time for bridge is limited these days, we're probably going to play in Kalamazoo on Saturday. Stay tuned!