Scrappin' for Scrabble

Dear Lara,

I have a close friend who I care deeply about. She and I play Scrabble on a regular basis. Last week she played the word "Tiber", which is a proper noun. Proper nouns are not acceptable Scrabble words. I gave it to her...after all we are buddies. I figured it was a one time thing.

Well, today she made the word "Uncrazy". She simply added "un" to the word "crazy" which I had creatively made earlier in the game. She asked if it was alright...what was I to say?

We will be playing again next Monday. What do you suggest I do if she continues to play fast and loose with the rules?

Thanks!

Scrappin' over Scrabble

Dear Scrappin',

Great question. Don't you hate it when people think they can get away with anything?!? I bet she's one of those who also takes up 2 spaces when parking and leaves her Starbucks cup in the grocery cart. Perhaps it is YOU that she needs in order to start paying more attention to the rules of the world as well as the board.

However, your question is also extremely timely. Did you know that the folks at Mattel have decided as of last week to allow the usage of proper nouns in the game of Scrabble? This is quite a jolt for the Scrabblers of the world. I am not sure when this new rule goes into effect - but until then you can always check for word accuracy here:

http://www.collinslanguage.com/extras/scrabble.aspx

Next game I suggest that you be sure to have your rule/instruction manual on the table or an open laptop with the aforementioned site up and running. Perhaps you could begin by saying to your friend, "You know, I've been questioning some of my word choices lately and decided to go through the instructions more carefully to be sure that I'm following all of the rules. This way we are really challenging ourselves and making the most of our game time together." If she seems resistant, I would continue to keep it on you. The last thing you want is for her to get defensive and angry. It is NO fun to play any game with an angry and defensive player. She could start playing harsh words that would really ruin the fun.

Good Luck!

Lara