Hey friends,
Bad news. My grandmother, Delores Meis, died suddenly a few days ago. Thankfully, she didn't suffer and, in fact, enjoyed various activities and socializing until the very end.
One highlight of my youth was the magnificently large meals she liked to prepare for company. Mashed potatoes and gravy were my jam. And there was always more.
Another joy for young Bruce was spending one week each summer on the dairy farm she and Grandpa Meis operated. Man, those were some early mornings. And I was always blown away by how Grandma had named and could recognize each and every cow on the farm, generation after generation.
Yeah, she was a brilliant woman, not only in her ability to remember names and recognize features of nonhuman animals, but in all ways. Including her preternatural capacity to play Scrabble.
I wrote the following in 2008. Reloaded here so you can glory in her victories as much as I hope Grandma did.
Our family played a lot of games when I was a kid. I was middlin' at most, with a pretty good win-loss record on Monopoly, Life, Chess, Checkers, or what have you. However, the one game I failed to ever win a single game at was Scrabble. My mom consistently beat everyone.
Well, this failure to ever win a single game of Scrabble has stuck with me through the years. Imagine my chagrin when I discovered my ex-wife Dee was also quick with the words and that she also beat me year in and year out.
We continued to play the occasional game though. She enjoyed it at least ;-). Then one day in 2008, seemingly out of the blue, I finally beat her in Scrabble. (angelic trumpets sound)
The first thought through my head: If I can beat her, I bet I can finally beat Mom, too! Practice makes perfect, right?
Not long after, I finally had the opportunity to challenge my mom to a game of Scrabble. My mom's mom, Grandma Meis, also sat down to play.
Little did I know that my mom's Scrabble ability was learned at feet of a true master. My grandmother roundly whomped us both, twice in a row just to prove luck played no part.
In fact, during one round, I foolishly indicated that I had the perfect play in mind... instead of taking that play away from me she let me have it (a grandmother likes to dote on her grandchildren): C R A Z Y in a triple word and double letter path that netted me 66 points. I figured I had that game sewn up.
But nope. Despite spotting me my grand play, Dolores surged forward and still handily beat me and everyone else at the table, Mom, too.
I have a feeling this is one champion I'll never unseat.
And I was right.
