…with Gary Moss

Archive for December, 2010

10. Lose 30 pounds; gain 30 rating points.
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9. Eat more vegies; eat less crow.
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8. Insure SUCCESS: Learn the 2′s & 3′s Cold.
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7. Reduce Fatalities: Challenge The Phonies Played Against You.
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6. Turn off the T.V.; turn on ZYZZYVA on your computer.
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5. Employ techniques of Edgar Casey. Place an OWL2 permanently under your Pillow and Chairs.
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4. Make your local scrabble club a part of your life’s weekly schedule.
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3. Do not be victimized at the scrabble board. Be prepared. Study daily, if only for 5 minutes.
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2. Eat more chocolate; play more 6-Letter-Words that include an ‘X’.
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1. Don’t Sweat It; Simply Enjoy It.

(And always watch for a new episode of Letter Man)

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What do you think? Should there be a scrabble tattoo policy? Should we be sticking our noses into other people’s preferences? Are hand and finger tattoos distracting to opponents? Do you think that some players are apt to take it too far and tattoo the ‘SATINE STEM’ on their digits?
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A Brief History

“the word tattoo is said to has two major derivations- from
the polynesian word ‘ta’ which means striking something
and the tahitian word ‘tatau’ which means ‘to mark something’.
(tatau is not a legal word in the OWL2.)

the history of tattoo began over 5000 years ago and is as
diverse as the people who wear them.

tattoos are created by inserting colored materials beneath
the skins surface. the first tattoos probably were created
by accident. someone had a small wound, and rubbed it
with a hand that was dirty with soot and ashes from the fire.
once the wound had healed, they saw that a mark stayed
permanently.

despite the social sciences’ growing fascination with tattooing,
and the immense popularity of tattoos themselves,
the practice has not left much of a historical record.”
~ designboom newsletter

‘Tis the season of reflection and evaluation.

Acknowledge those whom you appreciate. (Check this out: CLICK)

Now, go have a good day. Make a difference in someone else’s life.

And get out to a local scrabble club and have some fun.

Life is full of oppositions: Good/Evil; high/low; north/south; right-foot/left-foot; and Evolutionism/Creationism.

Scrabble too has it’s own two opposing sets of believers when it comes to the question of just how and why scrabble came to be.

Allow me to weigh in on this subject with my two cents.

The Evolutionists

Evolutionists point to the world around us as evidence and tell us that scrabble, like all other things, evolved in the scheme of things and continues to change form through time. From the time when some cave man uttered the very first word, Man had been searching for somewhere to place it (see the OWL2: hmm; shh; pht; ugh). For thousands of years, language expanded and took many forms. Some sects on our planet believe that the first 15 x 15 grid existed long before the development of the written word. They go on to point out that much of the first writing was done on clay tablets and papyrus which didn’t lend itself to fitting into the small squares on the scrabble grid. The language developing in China, back then, didn’t conform at all to the scrabble grid and became more of an art form.

And so scrabble just sat as some concept, on some shelf, waiting to happen. With the advent of moveable type (about the 1400s) and a language like English with 26 unique characters, the time was nearing for scrabble to happen on life’s stage. In 453 BAB (Before Alfred Butts), it is documented that Galileo and Juan Carlos, a linguist, were victims of the Spanish Inquisition. Some believe that if Juan Carlos had lived, he was on the verge of enlightening the world with his version of scrabble. So, scrabble continued to wait another 453 years for Albert Butts to do the deed. Had it not been for the Great Depression, and Butts being out of work, with lots of free time on his hands, we might all still be waiting.

That is what evolution is all about. Time and circumstance dictate the coming and going of things (consider Selchow & Righter, Colico, Miton Bradley, Hasbor, NSA, NASPA, ‘next’)

The Creationists

Creationists believe that divine intervention brought scrabble on the scene via Albert Butts as the chosen delivery man, much like Moses bringing the tablets down from Mt. Sinai. There was some confusion at first. Butts got the name wrong and called the game Kriss-Kross. And in the same spirit that many of the Jews turned their backs on Moses and erected a ‘golden calf’, many game players of Butt’s day turned a cheek and stayed with their crossword puzzles and played anagrams.

Creationists look to the heavens and praise the persistent and regular growth of scrabble over the last 80 years. They attribute the miracle as the work of God. Further evidence of a divine influence is the way more than 150 naughty words were banished from the OSPD, saving our children from the negative influence that words have on development and behavior.

CONCLUSION: I don’t really care if you are an Evolutionist or a Creationist, as long as you can give me a good competitive game. For a good tip on how to play the game better and wiser watch the episodes of Letter Man on You Tube. CLICK HERE

I owe scrabble a huge debt of gratitude for so many things that it has taught me. The learning didn’t all happen magically in a moment. It has been a process over time.

It was more than 20 years ago that I surrendered myself over as a willing student to this popular game which I have found to be mystical, magical, and profound.

Have you ever been one in a group, observing a painting in a gallery, when you saw something in the painting that was different and distinct from what the others had seen?

That is my experience as relates to scrabble. And yet I know so many family and friends who only view scrabble as a simple game, a muse, a pastime.

Some people travel great distances to sit at the feet of mystic gurus to learn life lessons and once there they search for the meaning of life and their purpose in it. How fortunate am I to have found my guru in a box, manufactured by Hasbro, in the form of a 15 x 15 grid and a set of 100 lettered tiles.

Maybe it is the angle at which I look at game. But then, I look at the board and the tiles from countless vantage points. Sometimes, thoughts, ideas, and ahas are generated by the game when I’m not even in proximity to the game itself.

Learning the words is the least of the lessons. From my perspective I see parallels to all of life: conception, growth, development, aging, and dying; politics, government, religion and sects; philosophies, truth, beauty and lessons in morality.

In scrabble I see the possibility for little white children and black children and red children and yellow children and brown children to come together and play.

In scrabble I see the possibility for all people to develop a common respect for rules, fair play, and achievement.

In scrabble I see the possibility to eliminate guns and bullets in favor of wars with words.

I watch well meaning educators and think-tanks working so hard, looking for new ways to educate our youth. I witness business, with their focus on Net-Profits, develop a never ending string of NEW and IMPROVED products (that they tell us WE MUST HAVE.) I watch as new commission are appointed and new school boards are elected on the promise of solving the woes of education.

The masses willingly play the fool and believe hype.

The truth is . . . we already possess the tool and simply have to use it: Scrabble.

I challenge you to see what I see. When you believe it, you shall see it.

If you believe in Letter Man, CLICK HERE.

I have countless un-scientific observations of scrabble being played and the people who play the game at competitive levels.

As a result, I have formulated a number of hypotheses in much the same spirit that Copernicus looked toward the heavens, Sir Isaac Newton watched apples fall, and Pearl B. Wait invented Jello (now a legal word in the OWL2) in 1897.

Inventors and imagineers are always doing some current step, keeping an eye on some possible next step. In order to be successful, the best of the best keep impeccable notes and records of their actions (much like the best scrabble players track the tiles).

The home and/or novice player of scrabble is mostly focused on only finding a word on his/her current rack and placing it on the board.

HYPOTHESIS: All Word Are Made Plural By Adding ‘S’

When players progress and become competitive players, they frequently play a word on THIS TURN, setting themselves up for a play on THE NEXT or SOME FUTURE TURN.

People all choose their own styles in scrabble and all of life.

Some people don’t want to make a commitment to ‘word study’ and ‘learning strategies’; they feel that all that work steals the spontaneity and fun out of the game. They would rather enjoy one word at a time.

HYPOTHESIS: Winners Think Ahead To The Next Turn.

Last week, in southern California, a large number of people had their homes flood with mud and other debris, as a result of a powerful rainstorm. Meanwhile many other people living in adjacent areas remained high and dry. Many people choose to live in harms way, with the trade off being the splendor of the view or some other measure of personal importance. Bless them.

If you want to WIN at playing competitive scrabble, it behooves you to develop a regimen that has you preparing for what is next. Acknowledge the Truth. We don’t know what we don’t know. Ask someone who knows (not your friend who beats you); ask a scrabble director (I could help you). CLICK

So, how are you going to prepare for what’s next in 2011?

His welcome to newbies is so contagious that they’ve invented a vaccine for it.

He designed and built an animal shelter out of scrabble tiles and now two dogs and a guinea pig live there.

Every time he goes for a swim at the beach LUV letters appear in the sand.

It is true that he conducted a podcast from inside a scrabble tile bag just to see where the blanks hide out.

At tournaments he’s allowed to touch his opponents’ tiles.

He is the most interesting scrabble director in the world.

He once challenged his own reflection to a game of scrabble; after 17 plays he won.

He can corner a bag of tiles in 14.5 seconds.

He can eat from the sharing table blindfolded then find playable bingos on his rack naming the foods which he ate.

He doesn’t always drink water but when he does he prefers it stirred, not shaken.

He has something to say about everything and turns every conversation into a conversation about scrabble.

He lost 30 pounds in 2010 in order to fit into a spandex Letter Man suit; he shoulders the responsibility of keeping competitive scrabble alive and well in southern California.

He is the most interesting scrabble director in the world.

Help keep this web site afloat: CLICK HERE. Thank you.

Have you ever wanted to really get into the tile bag and be among the tiles?

It is a kinky fetish that afflicts some scrabble players, including Letter Man.

In episode #7, which focuses primarily on the BENEFITS that we derive from playing scrabble, Letter Man broadcast to us from the inside of a tile bag.

You have to see it to believe it. The full clarity of the video is partially distorted due to the poor signal from inside of a tile bag.

And a Merry Christmas !

CLICK HERE

Did you know that different communities around the world use different official dictionaries when it comes down to competition in their clubs and tournaments?

The OWL2 which I often refer to is the Official Word List of the (NSA) National Scrabble Association and (NASPA) North American Scrabble Players Association. The associations that play in English, but use an alternate lexicon, use The Collins. The world championship games currently use The Collins as their legal list.

For many years, twenty or more, a group of players have been trying to promote the notion that all English scrabble around the world use the same lexicon. That group prefers that the legal list for scrabble played in English be The Collins.

Affiliated tournament players in the Unites States, have for years outnumbered the combined population of tournament players in other parts of the world. This large number of affiliated players in the United States were largely members of NSA, which had a business and a financial interest in serving the desires of its membership. Those members overwhelmingly turned thumbs down, in past referendums, when asked if they would like to move away from the OWL2.

You may want to know that whereas the OWL2 has about 155,000 entries, The Collins has nearly double that number of entries. Players in the United States have not been persuaded to take on the task of learning so many more words, most of which are rarely used in day to day language exchanges.

The debate goes on. A few competitions in the United State do in fact take place, in which The Collins is the official word source.

The arguments for and against are influenced but ideals, philosophies, business, and politics. That makes it very unlikely that any major change is on the horizon.

While these battles loom onward, the average scrabble player is primarily interested in sitting down across from a comparable opponent to enjoy a brain-busting battle, converting racks of unlikely tile combinations into legal words found on the legal list.

Personally, I’d love to see the mass of competitive players expand and thrive. Unfortunately, when the level of competition become too extreme, it scares many potential players away from playing long enough to get their sea legs. Like any other activity . . . . a person only becomes better with practice and study over time. No one becomes a good boxer, a great skier, a master musician, an exceptional chef on their first, second, or third time out.

When you go out to play scrabble at your local club, go to have fun via learning. Add a few new words to your war chest by learning some of those wonderful strange words played against you by your opponents. Crack the OWL2 at home and learn a few strange words to spring on your opponent. Track your improvement and don’t be too hard on yourself.

I played weekly for more than 2 entire months before I earned my first win at club. It was very frustrating at the time, but it was worth it to me. I learned so much while I was losing. It also humbled me and taught me how much there was out there that I didn’t know.

Think you want to become an ‘INSTANT SUCCESS’? You just might get from here to Expert quicker if you enroll yourself into the online Scrabble 101. You and I will interact daily for 5 weeks. CLICK HERE.

For the most part, the people whom you meet at scrabble clubs and tournaments are wonderful people.

But . . . the anxieties that competition creates, in the moment, has the power to bring out the ‘grinch’ in any of us. It is not easy to keep on smiling when your opponent is playing all the blanks and esses in bingos. Grinches make snide remarks; grinches sigh a lot (sometimes send hot breath at you across the board); desperate grinches know how to palm tiles and drop the unwanted one onto the floor, without being observed; grinches don’t know the official rules and after making their play, track their tiles before replenishing the tiles on their rack.

The players who upset me the most are those few mavin grinches who say insensitive and nasty things to newbies. (Criticizing a newbie’s play rather than offering a constructive suggestion; discounting a great play by a newbie, suggesting that they are only ‘LUCKY’; puffing up after a win over lower rated players.)

Grinches are talked about during the Christmas season but they are around the whole year long.

Grinches do serve a purpose, Grinch-types have been around forever, since the beginning of time. They are the other side of the coin. (Ivan the Terrible; Adolf Hitler; Idi Amin; Bernie Madoff)

After experiencing a grinch we have an even greater appreciation for the many good people in our lives: Mother Teresa; Ghandi; Letter Man.

Wishing you and your family a Merry Christmas.

Letter Man’s Scrabble Tips: CLICK HERE