#326 Play Bingo

BINGO!!!!!!

Come on, you have to admit, yelling those five letters is an exhilarating rush of ultimate victory! You have hit the jackpot. You have won the prize! The letters and numbers aligned in perfect harmony on your little, dabbed, paper card. Flawless victory my friend. Good on you.

Yes, Bingo is a game of chance. There are no guarantees you will claim victory even with 100 cards spread out in front of you. And trust me, I have seen some professional Bingo players with so many cards in front of them that they literally take up an entire table. Watching them dab all these cards is not only hilarious but also pretty mind boggling because these women are lightening fast and do not miss one number.

I usually miss at least one number every few games. I then spend the rest of the game frantically playing catch up while beads of sweat roll down my face. I actually won a game of bingo once but because I was behind on numbers, another number was called and someone else yelled bingo as well. Instead of winning $50, I won $25 due to my poor Bingo playing skills.

Oops. Got a little aggressive with my dabber. 

I am also guilty of dabbing the wrong number on occasion. Yes, I am one of those people that excitedly yelled Bingo once, only to find that, much to the pleasure of my competitors, I did not have Bingo. The Bingo Walk of Shame is no joke.

The best though is when you play the wrong card entirely. Each paper bingo game usually uses a different color card. Last week at purse Bingo, when I was playing one of the "Special" games, which was on a red card with light red blocks, I discovered I was playing the red card with the solid frame in my regular book of Bingo games.

I had just come off an exciting win and was doing amazing on the letter "H" special game. I was smiling, dabbing happily, in my own little world when I noticed my sister Steph kept looking at my card funny. Yep, I was playing the wrong card. There was no recovering from that one. We were way too far into the game. My sisters, my mother and I feverishly tried to get all my numbers on the correct card but our efforts were futile in the end.

Also, depending on the number of people attending Bingo and the amount of regular cards given in a Bingo package, some games of Bingo are won in the blink of an eye. I won my last Bingo with only five numbers being called. I think the game lasted a total of 2 minutes. I won on four corners. Some Bingo halls allow four corners to while other halls require true Bingo in order to win. True Bingo consists of 5 numbers or 4 and the Free Space called in a horizontal, vertical or diagonal line.

Let's Party!

Needless to say, Bingo is some serious business. Some women have lucky shirts they wear. Some women have lucky bingo charms which accompany them to every Bingo night. It reminds me of the movie Major League where the character Serrano often makes ritualistic offerings to his own lucky charm, Jobu. And while I have never seen any women offer their lucky charms cigarettes, rum or live snakes, I have no doubt a few of them have a flask stashed on them somewhere.

From every color dabber on the rainbow to custom made bingo bags to rolls of scotch tape to hold all those cards in place, Bingo is a game that brings out a little quirkiness in all of us. It's good fun and sometimes you even win a prize!

Some facts about Bingo.

• Each Bingo is made up of cards with 25 squares, one of which is a free space. 
• The Letter B is home to numbers 1-15
• The Letter I is home to numbers 16-30
• The Letter N is home to numbers 31-45
• The Letter G is home to numbers 46-60
• The Letter O is home to numbers 61-75
• The most common Bingo game played is winning via a straight line of numbers. They can be horizontal, vertical or diagonal.
• There are a host of special games that are usually played for bigger prizes. These games usually consist of forming a letter, pattern or cover all. 

Word to the MF!

While I would never consider myself a serious Bingo player, I do enjoy playing the game. My sister is more of a professional. Occasionally, I used to play cash Bingo with her at the church across the street from her house. One night, I wasn't sure we were going to make it out alive because we kept winning games. The women in there were so pissed at us. A few of curse words littered the stagnant air every time we won. It was pretty intense but also quite humorous. I am pretty sure we could have taken them but I am glad we did not have to find out.

Now a days, I prefer playing prize Bingo. Over the years I have won a Boyd's Bear, a Longaberger basket, a basket of goodies, and most recently a $330 Michael Kors pebble leather purse. Did I mention the purse is snow white? So yes, that is a little scary for me. It's kind of ironic that someone whom is always spilling food and beverages on herself as well as everything else around her wins a very expensive white leather purse. I kind of feel bad for the purse because I have a feeling things are not going to end well for it.

My biggest win. MK bag. It's white. Oh snap!

Nonetheless I love it and I will do my best to keep it clean. I actually gave this purse it's own bedroom with one of those fluffy little pet beds, a leopard print blanket and a tiara. Just kidding. The tiara is mine.

Seriously though, never in my life could I afford to buy a handbag like this. I feel kind of fancy. I also really enjoy MK products. I own a fancy MK scarf but my goose down jacket kind of ruined it. The seams on the jacket suck and leave little feathers all over the place. Millions of little feathers on a black scarf do not mix well.

My sister Alicia won me a pair of Uggs at a Coach and Uggs Bingo. She won a gift card for $125 towards a pair of Uggs and gave it to me. Man, Uggs are expensive too. Even with the gift card, I still had to shell out over $50 for the black ankle length Uggs I chose.

Plus they were already on sale. I must admit though, they are well worth the price. Not only do they keep my feet super warm but they are soooooo comfortable. I received two hand me down pairs of Uggs in addition to the pair my sister won and I seriously live in them.

Got some colors going on here!

Through all my journeys to various Bingo Halls surrounding NEPA, I have recently discovered the crown jewel of all Bingo events. This jewel of a Bingo event is a few towns over in Mahanoy City, PA.

The West End Fire Company holds a Bingo event that is so exceptional that even if you do not win one of the prizes, you still leave with this big smile on your face. They only run their Coach, Michael Kors and Uggs Bingo event twice a year but the experience is absolutely wonderful.

Why is this the best bingo ever you ask? Because they seriously treat us like queens there. First off, it is one of the few Bingo events I know of that provides one sheet of all special games in your package at no extra charge.

If you want to buy more sheets, you can, but the specials are included in the package. Also, the extra sheets for specials and early birds are only $1-$2 per sheet. Most other events charge you $3 a sheet per special game. I understand Bingo is a fundraising event but it's nice to be able to go to an event and not break the bank too much.

Secondly, they include a meal with your Bingo package. It's not a fancy meal but it is a very good meal. For Thanksgiving they gave us a turkey dinner. For Memorial Day, they gave us a BBQ dinner. They do charge for pizza but they will also walk around and deliver it to your seat so you do not have to get up. The pizza is soooooo delicious by the way. It gets better though. They also provide not one, but two huge tables filled with various types of desserts, for free! Cupcakes, cookies, eclairs, pies, brownies, cakes, puddings, layered desserts and a coffee bar is all for free.

And finally, they started something new last time I played bingo there. For the regular games, you get to choose your prize. You get to pick either the gift card for Uggs or any of the purses in the regular game line up. I think that is so fantastic. It's nice to be able to pick the prize sometimes. You will never hear me complain about winning any prize but it's nice to be able to choose too. They only drawback to this Bingo event is that it is so spectacular that literally hundreds upon hundreds of people go to the event. Your chances of winning are dwindled but you still get to fill your belly with good food and treats while having a blast playing Bingo for a few hours.

I won this beautiful Vera Bradley Dove Grey Handbag, Wallet and Wristlet set. I also won the small wristlet as a door prize. I did fantastic that night! 

I am not going to lie, every single Bingo event I have attended has been very nice. Some of the Bingo events have Tricky Tray, aka Chinese auctions. They are always a fun time. Some Bingo events have vendors on site in case you want to purchase yourself a consolation prize for losing. Some Bingo events give out door prizes to everyone for attending while other events give a door prize to one lucky winner after every game.

I even attended an adult Bingo where the prizes included lotions, lubes and a variety of other "toys" for the winner. That Bingo was a regular riot. I have never seen so many men playing Bingo. And if you won Bingo, you were not allowed to yell Bingo. You had to yell a naughty word or risk being disqualified. Not gonna lie, it was hilarious seeing an 80 year old woman win a tingle lotion and some nipple clamps. She was such a great sport.

See, there are so many types of Bingo you can play and all are a good time.

In closing, I honestly find any type of Bingo fun. Yes, some Bingo events cost more to play than others but all the proceeds go towards something positive. Whether the fundraising is for a church, volunteer fire company, sporting team, community project or schooling, it's truly a great way to show support for your community while having a fun opportunity to win a great prize. I have had plenty of lengthy losing streaks in my Bingo adventures but it's always a good time and always for a worthy cause. If you have never played Bingo before, you should try it. It's a blast! I know I can't wait until my next Bingo event!


Chrissy

Not too long after I wrote this I won another Michael Kors purse.  Woohoo! 

The $25 DD gift card I won at Gift Card Bingo. I won this a day after winning the Vera Bradley set. I was hot that weekend!