To gossip or not to gossip…
Do people talk during games? This a question new players nearly always ask. There is nothing in the National Mah Jongg League rules that addresses conversation during play. Any rules you and your group have are considered ‘table rules’. Just remember - The League recognizes any group’s right to their own rules, no matter how wacky!
Our mothers taught us to stay silent if we didn’t have something nice to say. Mae West suggested if we didn’t have anything nice to say, we should sit next to her! And yet none of that is really the issue with mahjong. The question isn’t if or when to be nice. It sort of goes without saying that being nice is always the thing to do. The question is more about when and if to talk at all!
A friend who is a relatively new player confessed to me that her group meets for three hours and they play two games! It turns out it’s not because they’re new players muddling through, or because any one player is particularly slow, but because there is soooo much conversation. Actually, they talk more than they play.
I once played with a group that did not chat. At. All. Nothing. There may have been an inquiry about another player in between games, but it was very brief. Deal the tiles, play the game, pay the winner, keep moving. Great for them. Not really my cup of tea.
The people I have been playing with for years easily finish ten games in the same amount of time as the group that only plays two. We try to reserve conversation for the time between games while they’re shuffling tiles and building walls. But once dealing starts all chit chat stops. Usually. I mean seriously, we’ve known each other for years and there’s stuff to talk about!
Conversation during play can be very distracting. Without any chatting at all, think about how many times you’ve lost track of which pass it was during the Charleston! Gabbing while playing risks forgetting whose turn it is, which hand you were thinking about, and who discarded what. Come to think of it, if you’re sabotaging your hand to prevent someone else from winning, talking about the fabulous new Thai restaurant could be a very effective strategy to further confuse opponents! Clever but uncool.
And while we’re at it - conversation applies to phones as well. Simply answering your phone to say you’re playing mahjong and can’t talk is just as distracting as actually talking! Put your phone away and mute the alerts on your watch. Pretty please.
Bottom line- every group eventually falls into a rhythm that works for them. It’s generally a Goldilocks and The Three Bears sort of solution. Not too much chatting, not too little. Catching up before, after, and between games, but respectful during. After all, the social aspect of the game is an important one. Just not during The Charleston!
What about your group? Do you gab during the game? Drop your answer in the comment box. Inquiring minds want to know!
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