Participated in my first Scrabble tournament tonight...

I participated in the Niagara Region Literacy Council's Scrabble for Literacy fundraising tournament tonight, my first Scrabble tournament ever. It was a ton of fun. Great buffet dinner, followed by three games of Scrabble. Silent auction, penny sale, and door prizes, too (I won a package of gourmet jelly beans -- 28 flavours!).

I had no idea of the scale of the event... there were at least a couple hundred people there, and they had a waiting list for registrations. For next year they say they've reserved double the space!

Scrabble-wise, it was a new experience. It was a team Scrabble event. 20 minute games, they provided the first word, and then each team/table worked together to fill the board. All tiles were face up. Quite a lot of fun... twenty minutes for a game, plus time to score, made me think this team Scrabble format could easily be adapted for use in schools.

So I'm definitely planning on doing it again next year. Next time, though, I'll be more organized, and get a whole team signed up, with our table reserved well in advance.

Overall, I had a blast playing Scrabble, ate a great meal, and supported a good cause. Time well spent.