Now what?

You've taken mahjong lessons, your crisp new National Mah Jongg League card has arrived in the mail, and you've even taken the plunge and purchased tiles, racks, and a mat. Now all you need is other people to play with!

This is a common dilemma. Maybe the folks you took lessons with live too far away or maybe they're nice enough people but just not your cup of tea. Hey, it happens. We all have our particular brand of quirks and weirdness. So how do you go about finding people who you would like to Charleston with? You can always threaten, nudge, and coerce your besties to learn to play. Kidding, not kidding.

Luckily, there are other options. This is a time when the interwebs can be useful. 

📚 Check out your community center or library- they often have drop in games. 

🏛️ If you have a synagogue in your neighborhood there are often leagues or free play offered there too.

👩🏼‍🦰 Try a local Meet Up group. They have groups for everything!

📢 Nextdoor in your community may have listings for people looking for games.

🥸 And of course there's Facebook.

New players in San Diego can ask to join the private Facebook page Beginners Mahjong of San Diego. It's specifically designed to connect new players with other new players in a safe way. Simply post a request looking for people in your neighborhood, or answer anybody else's post. Either way you'll meet new people and get a sense of who's your type of quirky and who isn't. Lots of cities have local Facebook groups too. Look them up.

When you connect with others it's a good idea to play with people who are at your skill level. If a group advertises as intermediate or advanced- believe them. If they say 'no beginners' they mean it. And please try not to take it personally. If you're a skilled pickleball player you most likely wouldn't want to play with a person who had just finished their first lessons. It's the same with mahjong. Occasionally you'll find a person who's happy to take new players under their wing. Just be sure they play NMJL rules before you snuggle up under those particular feathers.

In the end, the advantage to playing with other beginners is that you get to bumble through together. Nobody will get fidgety, or worse- cranky, if you need extra time to think before you move. Nobody will roll their eyes when you discard someone else's winning tile. Nobody will tsk-tsk when you goof and use a joker in a pair. Not that more experienced players would ever do those things. Cough cough. 

So find other newbies, figure it out together. Learn. Grow. And build that awesome community that mahjong is known for.