I love learning new games. I spend most of GenCon (“the best four days in gaming”) either in the exhibition hall or the games library learning new and new-to-me games. My job here at Free Parking is both teaching y’all games and learning the rules to games I’ve not played yet. My head is full of games rules, and yet there’s always room for more!

Our brains are remarkable—our capacity to learn and hold information, to make connections, to experiment and to have empathy. That some of these game designers don’t just create a single good game, but many games with such different mechanics and vibes—it’s amazing! Of course, we also have the capacity for ignorance, violence, and manipulation, but we can choose, particularly when it’s hard. What we do regularly shapes us. Choosing to learn more, choosing to to value knowledge and empathy regularly shapes us into better human beings and shapes the world around us for the better. It’s slow, this world-shaping, but it’s good work.

Tuesday you can come learn to play Magic: The Gathering (click the photo below) and Thursday you can put your own specific and general knowledge to work at our monthly trivia night. Come in any day and try out a game you’ve never played—maybe it’ll be your new favorite! And either way, your brain will thank you.

Alice C, board game librarian

Play Trivia Games

You should come to our monthly trivia night this week on Thursday, 7-9pm!

But if you can’t, bring some friends and play one of the trivia games in our library.

Trivial Pursuit—my copy from 1981, a bit dated, but a classic!
Fact or Crap—can you determine if the statement is true or false the fastest? Win and lose tokens based on your answer.
Mind the Gap—gameplay similar to Trivial Pursuit, but with decks of questions geared towards different generations, so you can play with your parents or kids.
SportIQ—get more points if you can answer without the multiple-choice answers, then go through the same questions again, but only hear one keyword from each and recall the answer from before.

Alice C, board game librarian

Try our Dr. Black cocktail

Bourbon and Luxardo cherry puree with cherry and chocolate bitters, the Dr. Black is a sophisticated, dark drink, perfect for sipping and thinking. It’s named after the character in the classic game Clue, as are the other new cocktails on our menu: Mr. Green (our take on the margarita), Mrs. Peacock (a fruity mojito), and Miss Scarlet (a refreshing pina colada).

Order a Dr. Black while you play trivia on Thursday!