Feb 26: Another Working Tuesday and Bourre (Boo-Ray)

BEEF!

Today wasn't super exciting, but was still a good day. I woke up and went to class, then spent all afternoon reading/taking notes on readings I hope to incorporate in an essay I will start writing tomorrow for my Banking & Finance in Economic Development course. I don't feel as confident with this topic as I have with others here, but hopefully after tomorrow I will feel differently.

I spent the rest of the night making dinner with Katie (Beef Szechuan Chilli stir-fry!) and watching 24. We are on Season 2 now, and I have to say its a pretty fun show. We have also started planning our next trips tentatively - it looks like the first one may include Istanbul, Vienna, and Budapest and a second one will include Prague, Munich (at the same time as Springfest!), and Amsterdam. Nothing has been purchased yet though so stay tuned.

In other news, here is a review of an awesome card game I've been playing (on my iPhone...yes I'm in video-game withdrawal) recently called Bourre (pronounced Boo-Ray). If you don't want to read it, skip to the end:
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I got dealt the hand at the bottom. Trump suit is Spades

BOURRE (BOO-RAY) ALL DAY

Looking for a new card game to play? Looking no further than the Bourre App from Bernard Pollard (yes, that Bernard Pollard....look at this!).

Low Diamonds and Hearts do me no good, swap'em.

Why would a professional athlete make a seemingly obscure card game app, you ask? Well, because Bourre, a hyper-gambling version of spades, is quite popular amongst many professional athletes, and is a game that has caused not one, but two, recent notable teammate altercations in the NBA. I can't wait to play it with my friends this summer.

I'm about to play the Ace of Spades and win this trick!

The full rules of the game can be found here, but I'll sum up the basics. Like Spades, Bourre is a trick-taking card game in which the goal is to take the most tricks each round. Each round consists of each player anteing, receiving 5 cards, choosing to keep, swap, or fold, anteing again (if playing) and then placing their best card available clockwise into the middle, forming a trick. Whoever has the best card in the trick - determined first by the trump suit (which is the suit of 5th card of the dealer), and then (if no trump suit present) by the suit of the lead card. If you take the most tricks, you win the pot. A few more rules: You have to follow the lead suit if you are able, even if you have a trump card. If you can't follow the lead suit, then you must play a trump card. These are the only two suits of value each round - all other cards are worthless.

The biggest catch - and this where I can begin to understand why it is a draw for many athletes and can definitely start fights - is that if you fail to win at least 1 trick you are "booed" and have to match the pot for the next hand. Pots get big. Fast. If you want to play this with friends, think about setting a limit. My advice - fold unless you really have something good. In real life, it might be more interesting to goad your friends into playing with weak hands though. Your money, your call. However, this doesn't matter on an iPhone app (where the money isn't real), so definitely get it. It's mega addictive and the app teaches you how to play (and makes sure you're always following the rules, which is helpful). I hope you enjoyed my review!
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Tomorrow I have a lot of work to do, so I will be getting to bed shortly. Hopefully it will be a productive day!

Til then - Cheers!