I'm finally getting around to documenting my sojourn into the world of competitive Tiddlywinks. There were many noteworthy events, which would make for a tedious single read, so I'll be posting in chapters. This is, as the title suggests, the introduction into what was a delightful if not surreal experience.
Executive Movement
This part isn't about Tiddlywinks, but I feel it bares mention.
I get to the airport on time, board the plane, and settle in, when the pilot clicks on the intercom with this little tidbit:
"Uhhhhhhh, (all pilots do that when they're about to say something) this is your captain speaking, we'll be headed out in, uhhhhhhhhh, about 12 minutes." Like hoe knows exactly when we're going, down to the minute. "We'll be delayed a bit, by… well, the tower's calling it 'Executive movement.' I'm not really sure what that is…"
I'm not really sure what that is. I know pilots aren't all geniuses, but when you're about to tackle the wild blue yonder in a big metal tube, you never want to hear the guy at the front of it say those words.
We end up getting delayed for a solid hour. The pilot gives two reasons:
1) The aforementioned "Executive Movement." Ted Kennedy died (for more information, read some other blog), and some of the President's political entourage was mucking up the airways going to or from the funeral service.
2) The tower gave the plane the wrong flight time, stating something about "Greenwich Standard Time" and being an hour off.
Not only is #2 an awful thing to happen to a company as dependent on time as a freaking airport, the two excuses don't mesh. It's like they lied for no reason. If JetBlue didn't provide TV and snacks I'd feel even more ripped off than I already did.
Expectations
We waited to be picked up at the airport by Larry Kahn, who I will discuss in detail in my next entry. When he pulls up, I immediately note his license plate: Winker 1. A few notions pop into my head; is he the number one winker? Is he just a winker, but "Winker" was already taken? Or maybe he has multiple cars? In the end I decided it was the first, but also that it was a D.C. thing, because on the way to his house I saw a car with the plate "Dingo 1." Or maybe that guy was the number one baby eater. We didn't get a chance to ask him.
When I first agreed to come to the tournament, I admit I had a few expectations. They were all wrong. One, that there would be multiple people. Nope. Eight. Eight people. I figured it would be held in a rented hall in a hotel, or some large venue. Nope. The National Singles Tiddlywinks tournament took place in the illustrious Larry's Rec Room. And I expected there to be a couple players close to my age. Well, a few had already showed up that night, as they were also staying at Larry's, so I went down to the rec room to see who showed up early.
It was like Bethlehem, complete with three wise men and a cheap palette not unlike the one Jesus may have slept in. I was greeted by the oldest men I have ever seen playing a game of anything, let alone a game formerly thought to be played by kindergartners. Their names were Ferdinand (Ferd), Bob, and Sunshine, whose real name I forgot. They too will get their own chapter.
I also believed I would not be the worse player at the tournament. I'll recount the Day 1 action tomorrow, and let you know how I fared on that one.
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