Random Thoughts Monday

My mother and sister were in town and I got to play a number of games with my sister as well as my whole family and friends. We played some Blokus Trigon, Rumis, Chinese Checkers, Apples to Apples, YINSH, Jambo, and Zooloretto. My son also taught Grandma to play Blink and Ghost Party.
So after finally playing Jambo I'm left with - meh. The game sounds half interesting and simple enough, but its mostly just simple. There doesn't feel like enough interesting choices. and the game just goes along and then poof - its over. I want to play once more, but I don't see what the big deal is now that I've played.
A couple of plays of Rumis reminded my why I like that game. It plays quickly and I really enjoy spatial games. There was a puzzle my great-grandmother had when I was a kid, and the pieces remind me of that a lot. At any rate - I need to bring this along to game nights more - its a good way to knock out 30 minutes.
I still suck at YINSH.
Apples to Apples is a mixture of the mundane and the hilarious. But, its good enough for a group of non-gamer friends. What I really need to get is Why Did the Chicken...?. This is a game that is begging for the clever quip to come out.
Playing Zooloretto reminded me why it won the 2007 Spiel - its a good family game. My mother picked it up after one playing and did quite well the next couple of times. Next time, we'll play Aquaretto.
YAMT - this math trade saw me trading off Twilight Imperium II (and expansion) for the original Blackbeard. Don't know if Blackbeard is easier to trade, but it is worth more... I'll have to play it at least once to see if is worth keeping. (the picture reminds me of the stupid Yellowbeard movie). I like pirate-y games, but haven't played one that's really great. Pirate's Cove isn't bad, but its a bit lighter. I think most people (myself included) just aren't sure what we really want from a pirate game. Is it theme? Game play? Why can't we find a "decent" pirate game?
Well, its about that time. For the third straight year, I'm participating in the BGG Secret Santa. I'm about to leave a clue here for my secret Santa target (not that he'll ever find it). My target this year (I'm not naming him) explicitly stated that he didn't mind a used game. To this end, I'm making a trade with Mike Gingold for Groo: The Game. This doofy game (and its expansion) are near the top of his want list, and despite being doofy and a Groo game, just isn't that common. This should make a nice present. I'll probably see about throwing in a light little two player game for him and his wife as well. And what do I hope to get? I don't really know. Nor care. Mostly, I'd like to open my present and just say - I didn't expect that. Last year I made a friend in Jay Moore (despite his being an MU fan). He had a clever present a day thing for a couple of days leading up to Christmas where I was to try and work out who he was. It took a little work, but I did. I also got to meet him at the Geekway and thank him in person. The BGG has lead me to meet a lot of nice folks.