Alice Housing provides housing options for women and children leaving abusive family situations in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Three years ago they also started what is now a successful play therapy program called Healing the Bruises.

“We can sit and talk, play a game of cards, and you’d be surprised at what comes out (of the children),” said Ms. Morgan, the counsellor.

Mrs. Morgan uses a host of board games in her counselling, including games called Anger Management and The Divorce Game.

I’m not sure exactly which ones she’s referring to, but maybe one of these 41 board and card games available from Therapeutic Resources.

(source)

“You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.” – Plato

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Robert Wade from New Zealand was an international Chess master who won competitions in New Zealand and Britain, played in several Chess Olympiads, taught and tutored, and maintained one of the largest Chess libraries in the world. He died yesterday at the age of 87.

He helped Bobby Fischer prepare for his famous match against Spassky by compiling a database of Spassky’s games.

(source)

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Part of the holiday spirit is giving, and many are doing just that.

Board Game News is sending $1,800 worth of games to US troops.

Starlit CItadel games is using its products as a school fundraiser.

Check out the Board Game Geek forums for various other projects involving donating games, or gamers donating. If you know of other efforts, post them in the comments. And don’t forget to check out gaming-related charities.

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Just to help things along with the season rush for games, many stores are offering great deals on games, I’m sure we can get David to do a roundup of all the sales in a future post (hint hint), but here are some:

Lock and Load is offering 50% off some games until Sunday night.

Fantasy Fight has a clearance sale with huge discounts.

Columbia Games has a sale on until Sunday.

Everything at Adamant Games is $1

A lot of other sales came and went on “Black Friday”, so don’t only wait for me to tell you the news. Pay attention!

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The number of media articles on how games are the gift of choice for this holiday season is astounding. Almost makes me think that my job here is done.

Along with the articles listing games as the economical choice for a holiday season beset by economic woes, a few articles add some interest, like this one in the Columbia Dispatch, about the downsized requests made to department store Santas:

They climb onto his generous lap and ask for wishes to come true. In this economy, the traditional visit with Santa could easily lead to Christmas disappointment.

But little kids are smarter than that. And kinder, too.

“It’s like they know,” said Tim Leasure, a Santa-for-hire whose beard and belly are the real thing. “They seem to be downsizing what they’re asking for.”

“One boy said he thought it would be best if I gave a family gift,” Leasure said. “Kids will tell you everything, and they’re just completely honest. It’s quite moving.”

Leasure, president of the Buckeye Santas club, said some of those who asked for toys were shockingly modest in their requests.

“They asked me for board games. I said, ‘Isn’t that wonderful? You want something you can all do together and enjoy as a family.’  ”

(image)

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Warren Clements in The Globe and Mail waxes long on the origin and use of the word “game” in non-play contexts. I wrote something similar once, about the misappropriation of the word “game”.

The noun “game” dates from the Old English gamen, borrowed from the Germanic tongues and lingering in the word backgammon. Writer John Ayto says gamen may have derived from “a prehistoric Germanic compound formed from the collective prefix ga- and mann – ‘person’ (source of English man) – and denoting literally ‘people together, participating.’ ” People together get up to all sorts of things, which explains why game was used as a euphemism for sexual intercourse. James Boswell used it that way in his journal entry for Jan. 12, 1763: “Proud of my godlike vigour, I soon resumed the noble game. … [Louisa] declared I was a prodigy.” The analogy continues to this day, when men successful in seducing women are said to have scored. The word has even turned pro; prostitutes were said to be on the game.

(source)

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Watertown, NY’s chess club is changing format to include other strategy board games, including sessions on Axis and Allies and Euro games.

The new club held at the Sci-Tech Center will now be the Sci-Tech Chess and Strategy Games Club.

(source)

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The 20th Annual International Tournament for the game of Risk occurred at the beginning of this month in Allentown, PA.

It had the same curious rule wordings that the Canadian tournament had.

The former world champion lost to a father from Stroudsburg. (source)

(source)

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Over on BoardGameGeek, there have been a ton of mock-ups of the popular 1960: Making of the President showing other elections.  Now, Zev Shlasinger, the man behind Z-Man Games, has announced that a game based on the same mechanics as 1960, but with the setting of the 2008 election, is under way and possibly release in the next few months!  No other details at this point, but for those who love card-driven wargame mechanics in a political theme, this is pretty exciting news.

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