When it's about the game

I'm a 49ers fan.

This post has nothing to do with that.

Today, Alex Smith made a very uncommon decision for a professional athlete - one that wasn't driven by money. By restructuring his contract with the 49ers, Smith effectively forfeited a substantial sum of money to stay in San Francisco. With plenty of other teams still interested in the 24 year-old and willing to ante up with more green, Smith ultimately made his decision because of the fact that he "just wanted the chance to compete." It wasn't about the money. It wasn't about a hometown discount. It was about the sport.

Say what you will about his first four seasons or his future in the NFL. Say what you will about the 49ers and their upcoming QB controversy. But you've got to love to see an athlete bring his/her heart to a professional sport. It's what makes college sports engaging. It's what makes watching the Tampa Bay Rays in the World Series exciting. The teams and athletes with the desire to prove that they can compete at the highest level remind us why their sport continue to captivate.

Kudos to Alex Smith for showing some maturity and some respect for the game. And Kudos to the 49ers for sticking with a guy that hasn't worked out in the past but is ready to fight for a job.

- KLB

Pandemic is Contagious

Looking for a last minute gift? The Suite Spot recommends the new board game Pandemic as one of the best and most innovative games to come out in years and the perfect unique holiday gift. The players must cure 4 distinct but equally deadly outbreaks that are rapidly spreading across the globe. The great part about this game is that the players have to work together to find the solution, so playing the game is a fun collaborative experience. It's not all roses and sunshine though, each session of Pandemic is a tense and exciting affair. As the disease spreads organically across the board, the players prospects for winning become increasingly bleak. Even better, the game is really easy to pick up and play, takes only about 45 minutes, and provides a wealth of different game play options and tactics despite its simplicity. The game has been difficult to find for quite awhile now, but has recently been put back into wide circulation. Catch this Pandemic at your local game store for about $30, but you might want to get vaccinated first. 

If Kong is wrong than I don't want to be right

Recently it has surprised me to hear that many have not heard of the superb documentary "King of Kong". This fantastic film is the best documentary of this decade and one of the best films that I've seen in a long time. It documents the battle between longtime Kong Kingpin Billy Mitchell and newcomer Steve Wiebe over the all time high score in Donkey Kong. It may sound silly to you, but this is one of the funniest, most dramatic, and just plain best movies in quite awhile. If you haven't seen it, find another friend who has also missed out and watch it with them. You'll look like you have amazing taste. It'll be our little secret.

A Monopoly on stupidity

Here's a quick way to tell if someone is an annoying and foolish lemming: Ask them if they like the game Monopoly. If they say no, ask them why not? They will almost certainly claim that the game simply takes too long. Then ask them if they play with the "free parking scoops the pot of accumulated taxes and fees rule". They'll say yes and claim that it is how everyone plays. Then you say that it's not actually in the official rules and that people just made that rule up over the years. They'll retort that it makes the game much more fun. Wow.

Really? A game who's duration is solely limited by the amount of money in circulation but is claimed to be too long by all is made more fun by putting more money back in circulation? Amazing.

Monopoly is an expertly crafted game and should be played by its intended rules for optimal fun and duration of play. Do yourself a favor and read the rule book, or if you're one of the aforementioned annoying lemmings, then I'll quickly review the most 3 most ignored ignored Monopoly rules.

1. Free Parking is just that. A free space to park your token for one turn. Nothing happens if you land there. Accept this fact and the world will be a better place.

2. There are 12 Hotels and 32 houses. That's it. If you run out then you can't build anymore. This is one of the most powerful strategies for any but the most basic Monopoly player, but rarely does the common player take advantage of it. Create a housing shortage and dominate.

3. If a property is landed on and the player decided not to purchase it outright, the property then goes up in an open auction for all the players (including the one who initially declined to purchase). This rule ensures that all the properties get purchased in a timely manner and speeds the game up significantly. Brilliant, right? Wrong! It's in the damn rulebook but I've never seen a casual Monopoly game use this rule.

In conclusion, please allow the Parker Brothers to rest in peace by playing their game with the proper rules. You'll have alot more fun and you'll be far less annoying to me. Thank you.