all dots -- no dashes

I love games.

That may be why I became an attorney. The search for truth is always a bit of Chutes and Ladders with very little Sorry thrown in.

Several years ago, my upstairs neighbors taught me to play Mexican train -- just one of the multifarious versions of dominoes. And I learned something very important about myself.

Even though my legal career was all about winning, I do not play board games to win. I play them to enjoy the social intercourse.

My Mexican train trainers were quite patient with me. But they each approached the game differently.

The husband and I thought it was solely a social occasion. We would be riffing on a comparison between Locke and Wittgenstein when the wife would remind us we were not at at a university faculty party; we were playing a game.

I get little thrill out of winning Mexican train. But I do like playing it.

Darrel and Christy brought the game down with them in December. Mom thoroughly enjoyed playing it. But she plays to win. I play to chat.

Next week Darrel and Christy head back to the cold temperatures of Bend. So, we decided to take advantage of a very pleasant day at the beach to break out the tiles with the colored dots -- and to simply enjoy what passes for wit in the clan Cotton.

In a month, I will not remember who won which bout. But I will remember the fun we have had as a family.

Now, they just need to decide to spend more time here in Mexico. After all, what is this situation comedy going to be when it is reduced to a solo stand up routine?