I’ve been singing more recently—it’s something I’ve done all my life, though not professionally. I love singing in groups, feeling the harmonies in my body and making something beautiful together. I learned a song recently that goes like this, “Courage is not the absence of fear: it is the feeling of this fear, being afraid, and showing up anyway.” Singing that in a crowd is so filling, and it feels like the hope and strength of that expands outward as I sing.

I think there are ways that games and welcoming spaces like Free Parking can help us show up in the midst of our fear. Because simply sitting at the bar and sharing a game and a drink with a friend who is suffering is everything. Because bringing your partner or your kids for some appetizers and time away from the infinite scrolling is everything. Because celebrating another birthday or meeting the parents or just pausing after work to laugh and live our lives and grow something beautiful is everything.

Am I waxing poetic? Well, there’s a game about that, too.

Friends, keep warm, keep heart, and keep playing.

Alice C., board game librarian

Play games new to the library!

Sometimes folk donate games to us, sometimes we trade (like the swap coming up on the 11th), and sometimes a publisher sends us neat things out of the blue:

Azul: Duel is a two-player upgrade to the classic Azul, adding in a modular board and round tiles with a sun-and-moon theme. Definitely worth a look if you love Azul and want some more crunch!
Fit to Print makes players into charming forest animals racing against a timer to choose articles and photos for their woodland newspapers! You’ve got limited time to choose tiles and then place them onto your newspaper’s front page to get the most points. Fast and silly, with just enough puzzle to keep you coming back.
Rowdy Partners is a new team trick-taking game from local publisher Capstone. Players are tag-team wrestlers, throwing punches and combos in the form of card-play.
Mousetrap is not new, but it’s new to us! Move your mouse around the board, building the terrifying trap and avoiding being caught by your collective construction. Also there’s cheese!
Tulikko showed up on our doorstep from Pandasaurus Games and we are thrilled! It’s a tile-laying game about building a forest with gorgeously-illustrated art and complex decisions.
Tacta came to us from a trade and you won’t want to miss this one. Two to six players lay cards on the table, overlapping in particular ways so as to cover the scoring dots of others and maximizing your own. Think the vibe of Tron but with cards. Easy to learn, a little mean, and great fun!

Try our classic Smashburger!

Listen, I wanted to hilight the new pulled pork this week, because it’s tasty and we’re swapping it in to all our menu items with brisket. But I ordered the nachos to photograph them and then I ate them all up.

So instead, please enjoy this delicious photo of our smashburger—crisp on the outside, juicy on the inside, served with classic toppings and the side of your choice—you really can’t go wrong.