Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Scrabble Rules

A good friend and i have been assiduously playing an online version of Scrabble recently, and pretty much trading games. She kicked my ass in one, we actually TIED in another (what are the chances of that happening?), and it looks like I'm going to kick her hiney in this current game unless she whips out some obscure triple-word-score and defeats me with resounding soundness at the last minute. not at all an outside possibility, the way things are going. (i have no vowels. none. ridiculous.)

so here's my big problem with online Scrabble. i love playing. it's a swell way to dawdle away those very important daylight hours without actually getting a damn thing done. BUT. it's unpredictable, and computer-based, which means you can't argue, even when the computer is quite OBVIOUSLY in error. for example.

here's a list of words the computer has not allowed me (or an opponent) to play.

zion
id
zoot
(there are a few more perfectly legitimate words I can't remember now, but I was outraged at the time)

and here's a list of words that the computer HAS allowed me (or an opponent) to play.

tit
starts-with-C-but-rhymes-with-"bunt"
ama
sard
za
mic
jun
ae

I submit to you, outside the profane, but commonly used, first two words, do ANY of the other ones count? what the hell is "za?" "jun?" "ae?" And while I admit that there is a dictionary definition for "sard," shouldn't it be nixed on the basis of ludicrosity?

And furthermore, are zion, id, and zoot not perfectly normal, highly utilized, common nouns of the English language?

I protest, computer. I protest. I know you're not listening (or if you are, you're pantomiming having wax in your ears and shouting "what?! i can't hear you!" like an old man) but. For the record? I protest.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Those two letter words will get ya...
http://www.trussel.com/scrabble/2words.htm

clergywm said...

might I suggest the method of one famous(perhaps infamous is more appropriate) scrabble player I knew - who spent his many hours/years of incarceration memorizing (a significant amount of) the scrabble dictionary! Given his appearance and general demeanor, he managed to keep himself in pocket change playing against more upstanding citizens!
L,h&k, Mom

H-SPO said...

i have ALL vowels.