Regional Sundays Are Bittersweet

For me, bridge tournaments are a lot like summer camp. You've got all these people from all different places joined together for the same hobby, and for one week at a time, you're the best of friends. You probably don't talk or see much of each other outside tournament life, but it's always easy to pick up right where you left off. If you know you don't have another tournament on your schedule for a while, folding up your bidding boxes on that Sunday afternoon can be a sad moment.
I'm always glad to get back to regular life (it's really hard to get any work done during a bridge tournament, and forget about eating right and exercising...), but it does bum me out to leave at the end. Still, I look forward to Sundays, because Swiss Teams are one of my favorite events.

My first Blue Ribbon Qualification came in Reno, when we won the A/X Swiss -- also the win that put me over the top for Life Master. I've since done very well in this event throughout the year. It's nice that one loss doesn't take you out of the running like in a KO, and I feel like there's more glory to winning a Swiss event than a KO, where you only need to beat three teams for a victory.

Yesterday's Swiss game in Seaside was a fun one for me, and I've got some good stories to tell -- but those will have to wait, because as if we haven't played enough bridge this week, McKenzie and I are on our way out the door to the 11am club game here in Portland!