White Rabbits, Monday 1st June

Catmojo
Matt
Mon 1 Jun 2020 13:08
24:54N 52:41W at 0630 local = GMT minus four hours. Still almost no wind, so still motorsailing.

Another lovely day in 2-3m bright blue seas, still containing exactly the same number of fish as the day before, at least from our point of view.

We're 400miles or so from the halfway point to Horta (if we go there) and Ampi says she wants to go swimming at that waypoint, perhaps over
1100 miles from the nearest dry land and almost three miles from the nearest water-covered land. Ooer. I think it might be a very brief swim.

Anna goes "swimming" several times a day, by pouring a bucket of seawater over herself on the back steps. Very good for the skin she says, and with her medical expertise she should know, I suppose. This makes that time a few days ago when I sneakily drenched her with a whole bucket of water whilst she sunbathed on the forward trampolines (and while Sam filmed and Ampi sniggered) which I flung from down the sidedeck a bit of a wasted prank - ever-positive Anna said it was very refreshing, dammit.
There again, the other trampoline (strong fabric stretched between the hulls ahead of the mast) partly came adrift last night and trailed in the water so it might have all worked out differently anyway, eh?
Seriously, I need to change the trampoline-attachment engineering so they're looped THROUGH each of the attachment points all around, not merely "around" some hooks as the current set-up and original obviously-iffier design.
Shameless Plug here for Ernst And The Gang at Tropical Sail Loft at Lagoonies in SXM who made the fabulous trampolines with proper welded seams.
The rest of yesterday (Sunday) was spent on the serious pursuit of playing slightly-aggressive cards - Nurdle Drurdle of course, the rules of which are published here for the first time EVER.
Mojo Offshore Nurdle Drurdle (which is loads more fun than dominoes
btw): 2+ players. Best in groups of 4 players, I think. Need a pack of cards including Jokers. You need more packs above say 5 players. It's ok if some cards are missing, or more cards are added from other packs to spice up the game.
7 cards are dealt to each player from the pack. It's ok to deal a few or all 7 at a time to each player. The object is to play out all your cards before anyone else. The game or "hand" is over when the first person plays out their last card correctly. A full "Set" or "Rubber" is a simple "first to win five hands".
Play: After dealing the dealer turns over only the top card as the start of the "playing" pile. The rest of the cards are put face down as the "pickup" pile. When the pickup pile is used up, then a new pickup pile is made from turning over the playing pile except for top (current) card, unshuffled (Ampi).
Note: the first card turned over to start the playing pile is "paid" so first player can play a card with that value or any of same suit is okay. Left of dealer starts, going clockwise.
Each player plays a card in turn on to the playing pile BUT they gotta follow suit or value of the previous card.
If the suit is changed the active player must say "Nurdle" just ONCE, audibly. On playing their antepenultimate card (i.e. when they have one card left yet to play) the active player must say "Drurdle". If their antepenultimate card changes suit, they say "Nurdle Drurdle" but "Drurdle oops Nurdle" is fine too.
Special cards:
Jack (knave) changes the direction of play from clockwise to anticlockwise or back again for the next players - thus now the next player is the previous player, and might not be ready for it! A Jack has no effect in a 2-player game, if you think about it.
Playing an 8 - the player MUST play another card as part of their turn - so an 8 cannot be your last card to win - you need to play another card or pick up. Or have saved a suitable other card to play of course, much better.
Playing a 7 means the next player misses their turn. Thus in a 2-player game a 7 or an 8 have the same effect - except that you can finish with a 7, but not with an 8.
Playing a King or 2 is aggressive: on playing a 2 or a King, then the next player must ALSO play a King or 2 (following suit or value, and saying Nurdle if suit changed) OR if they don't then they pick up TWO penalty cards. BUT...if that second player plays an appropriate 2 or King, then the following player picks up FOUR penalty cards, or plays appropriate 2 or King but must follow suit of number,lifting the penalty tariff to SIX cards for the next player, and so on. Thus the pickup penalty can increase to EIGHT if all four Kings are played by successive players, or SIXTEEN if 2s are also played as part of the same King-2 sequence.
Jokers can be Any Specific Card You Decide at the time of play but you must announce it at the time of play and say Nurdle/Drurdle if needed.
You might eant it to be the same card as the previous one, which is fine. Someone plays the King of spades and you pass along the tariff saying that your Joker is ALSO the King of Spades. With 2 jokers the maximum king-2 sequence penalty could rise to someone getting a disastrous 20-card pickup. Arg! Or hehe, if it isn't you.
Ace is slightly wild - not as good as a Joker - an Ace can be played at any time but NOT in a king-2 sequence. Any Ace can be played (without following suit or number) and the player can use it to change suit to another chosen suit, and saying Nurdle is required. An Ace can only change the suit not the value. If an Ace is played on a card of the same suit without saying Nurdle then the suit stays as that suit.
Gamesmanship 1 - it's ok (and in fact an essential part of the fun) for others to force errors and say "pardon?" or "and what do you say this game is called?" to get the active player (or any player) to repeat the word "Nurdle" or Drurdle out of turn and get a penalty card. It's one card per false mention of these words. If the accuser(s) say "you didn't say Nurdle!" then they too get a penalty for saying Nurdle out of turn.
Best use "n-word" or "d-word" in launching random challenges. In advanced games of experienced (i.e. addicted) players, expect a penalty card for incorrect challenges and for any hint of "not knowing what's going on" - even asking "is it my turn now?" wins a penalty card at Advanced Level (i.e you played the game the day before).
Strategy 1: as soon as you say Drurdle, the others are On To You and may start a King sequence, or play 7s to miss you out. So consider holding on to 8s and Jokers to give yourself a multi-card "out shot" (repeated 8's or Jokers you decide are also 8s) saying Nurdle on each suit change and Drurdle as you play your next-to-last card. Thus other players have no notice of your impending Great Win. Expect sledging as you play this out-shot and Oh didn't say the n-word etc.
Strategy 2: it's best NOT start king-2 fights unless you are sure you have cover (two or three Kings, 2s or Jokers as below) in case it comes all the way back round to you with massive pickup penalty. Ouch.
Out-shot faults and investigations: If you find you have just one card left and didn't say Drurdle, try stay quiet to get away with it, and/or pick up quietly at your next turn. Correcting yourself AFTER your turn wins another penalty - you said it out of turn! Unless a Learner's game "lets you off" of course. If your final card isn't played correctly, other players can impose a penalty for not saying N or d-words. But if any players "throw in" their cards to cover yours before a challenge is launched - you win regardless. They can't throw in their cards and THEN launch a challenge.
Turns: Your turn begins as the previous player plays their card and ends when the next player plays their card. So as speed increases make sure you say Nurdle or Drurdle as or before you lay the card, else your words are Late = yet another penalty card.
Game Variations and letting people off is entirely as deemed appropriate by the players.
Finally 1 Like (say) Tennis, you might win (or more likely lose) due to all sorts of Oh Surely Not! unfair-seeming cunning or sneaky stuff, and it's just Tough and Get Over It applies throughout Nurdle Drurdle games.
It Stays On The Court also applies.
Finally 2, if any player wins five consecutive hands without any other player winning a hand at all (in other words they win 5-0-0-0) then it's called a "Mojo", but it's very bad form to brag about it, so I won't.