Page 18 - Discover Summer 2021
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Kate’s Corner CONTINUED
in bad health, so I’m sure it was how win by two points. By this time I was
she passed the down periods of her playing 7 or 8 other friends along with
day… and she seemed to have many random challengers, plus the 3 or 4
down periods. At about the time when games Gail and I always had going.
I was beginning to feel guilty about
My winning streak returned after
winning every game, she wrote:
that one loss. Over the months while
“I’ve never seen anyone as lucky we played, her husband died, and then
as you.” More than once she remarked she had to go on oxygen because her
that I got all the “good letters” while COPD had worsened. I began to feel
she got the bad ones. Since the like a bully, but I didn’t know how
computer assigns letters, there was to gracefully “let” her win. We did
certainly no possibility of cheating in reduce play to no more than two games
that regard. simultaneously, and I stalled as long as
possible between plays.
“Do you ever let her win?” My
daughter suggested. Then, a glitch in the game app
assigned her a new name. It started
Throwing a game is not in my
referring to her as Zyngawf. She was
DNA. I was also pretty sure that
aware that it had happened, but didn’t
she’d know if I “let” her win. I’m not
know why or how to stop it. Then, it
good enough to throw a game without
started doing the same thing to another
raising suspicions, and she wasn’t so
friend I was playing. That friend and
bad that she wouldn’t realize what I
I also frequently played two games
was doing. I did put less and less effort
at once. Like Gail, my other friend
into winning, and still won anyway.
couldn’t stop the assignment of that
“I beat everyone else I play,” she strange name.
complained once. “My sister hardly ever
I could usually keep the two
beats me.”
players straight even though the game
That was a little hard for me to assigned the same name to both of
swallow, as I was being beaten pretty them. Chatting while we played helped.
readily by other players. There was one Then, Gail beat me for a second time.
guy I was only able to beat every 5th or It was a trouncing - a well deserved
6th time we played. victory. She must have been delighted.
I congratulated her and thought I had
Finally, after a month or two,
started a new game.
Gail beat me. If I’d been paying
attention she wouldn’t have, but I made Within days, however, I realized
a careless mistake, which allowed her to I was “light” in the games with
16 Discover Smith Mountain Lake SUMMER 2021
