In the Cards

It's no secret that yours truly, the Informatician Extraordinaire, is a card player. No, not poker--that is a popular game right now and the Extraordinaire rarely jumps on the current bandwagon, but spades and other bidding games. She plays just about every day with her esteemed colleagues at work and her devotion to the game is such that she comes into work an extra half-hour early every morning so as to be able to ride the first park-n-ride bus and go home with her vanpool.

What is it about those 52 cards and four suits that are so appealing? Is it that the Extraordinaire triumphs so often or because she and her associates sometime laugh so loud as to cause serious harrumphing among her other co-workers. Why does the game sometime tie her stomach in knots? Perhaps she is trying to appease a picky partner (you know who you are!) or count cards so she doesn't embarrass herself too much? We'll never know. Meanwhile, if you hear a deck being shuffled in the 9th floor small conference room, you know where The Extraordinaire is playing...