I am ALL Bingoed out!

I managed to make it onto the Bingo bus to Maine this year!   I had full intentions to go on this bingo adventure last year, but unfortunately on the morning of the trip, I came down with that nasty flu bug that was going around, and I had to cancel....

I call this a bingo adventure, because that is exactly what it is......12 hours of bingo.....Yes...I said 12 hours of bingo...That is not a typo.....6 hours on Saturday and 6 hours on Sunday....with very large jackpots.....On Saturday, they were roughly $5, 000 a game, with one game worth up to $25, 000.......On Sunday, they ranged between $1100 to $1400......How much did I win?    Zip, zero, zilch....Oh, with the exception of the $25 I won on the bus....Yes, we played bingo on the bus as well.......You could say, I am all bingoed out for now...at least until next year....

It was an experience.....I'm guessing up to 900 people, came to play bingo at the Penobscot High Stakes event...This is where it is held.....It is an old arena converted into a bingo hall on the Penobscot Nation.  The Indian Nation is located on a beautiful River......but I have to admit, most of the homes there are run down.....The people at the Bingo Palace, I assume who were the the organizers, were very friendly, and welcomed us in....There were roughly 12-15 chartered buses parked out front, filled with people who had come from New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Massachusetts, along with others states in the U.S, to play bingo for the weekend....Some of them went home big winners.....while others went home with VERY empty pockets........It's amazing the amount of money that some of these individuals drop at this type of event.....Some had bingo cards that literally spread from one end of the table to the other.....with the hopes that would increase their chances of winning the big one.......For some, it worked(including the woman at the table next to us who chose to "Shuush"  one of the women who I was travelling with)  She scored big with a win of around $5000.....But I think she probably spent close to $1000 with the hopes of that win.....Bingo players came with their good luck charms, that ranged from miniature Buddhas, to rubber chickens.....or just simply a picture of a loved one........The bingo bags full of daubers....in a number of colours.......They're not just red, blue and green anymore.....They come in coral, or lilac, or even with sparkles......

It was almost like going to a Star Trek convention......But with bingo players who don't dress up.....But they all have their rituals....whether their cards are taped a certain way on the desk, with their good luck charms set up in just the right order...with their daubers lined up.....all of them rehearsed and ready to yell "Bingo" at a moments notice........And I realised that the job of a bingo caller is certainly a lot harder than I thought......These people, I'm convinced, must be required to attend bingo caller school......because they would have to be able to cope with the verbal abuse they take from the players.......Misread a bingo ball....Oh boy, you won't make that mistake again.....Call the numbers too fast, or call too slow....I'm sure the bingo callers have been called every name in the book.....It's amazing how grumpy a room full of bingo players can get after they've dabbed for 5 hours straight without a win......The air is not just thick with the cigarette smoke....it's also from the steam coming from the players ears because of how angry they get that their numbers haven 't come up....(This bingo hall still has a smoking and non smoking section...But really, what's the point.....I still smelled like a pack a day smoker when  I left the place....and I haven't lit up since I was in my 20's)

This was some serious bingo playing.....Not like the kind in local Lions Clubs and community halls......There was a lot at stake......The dauber ink was flowing, there was tension in the air......(oh, and I must make mention of the woman who had tucked her cell phone into her cleavage, while playing bingo.....On vibrate?   Didn't want to miss a call?  I'm not exactly sure.....)

So aside from sitting at a table, chatting with your neighbour, dabbing the numbers on your card...what else goes on at a bingo hall?   Eating......Constant munching......It`s like the adrenaline makes the players hungry....except I`m sure it wasn`t burning the calories.....There`s a reason why a lot of the men and women who play bingo are overweight, aside from the fact that they are sitting on their tushies playing bingo......The hands are constantly going....Dabbing, eating, drinking....dabbing, eating, drinking.....with a winning holler of "bingo"  once in awhile in between....

Those are some of the ladies I travelled with.....There were many others as well, aboard this chartered bus from Moncton....Many of the ladies in the group I was with, hoped for the win....but they mostly travel to Maine for the shopping and as a weekend getaway....Only one of us got lucky.....and she only managed a win of around $75....But it's better than nothing...

This was our bus.....Very comfortable, and air conditioned...which was important...When you are travelling with a load of ladies over the age of 40.......It's important to have air conditioning!   LOL

Now, while we spent the majority of the time at the bingo hall, we also did some shopping as well......Walmart, Kohl's, Marden's and some of the ladies went to the Christmas Tree Shop.......It's not all about Christmas there.....they sell just about everything....and it is all a great bargain.......I now love Kohl's, and I couldn't believe the prices.....Even Walmart was an experience!

I think that a lot of New Brunswickers had the same idea over the long weekend....They headed to Maine to shop...The border was lined up...

Overall, it was an exhausting trip.....Lots of time spent on the bus made it tiring, and we were on the go the whole time.....I have no regrets...It was nice to get away, and I met some new people.....And to be completely honest, it was very refreshing.....I missed my family and it was nice to come home......It's true what they say, "Absence makes the heart grow fonder......" It's nice to get away for a bit of a break, but it's even nicer to come home..... And I picked up a few treats for my hubby and two kids while I was away.....(My daughter suggested that I buy something for our cat as well.....But I figured she is spoiled enough!)  

I felt a little bit like I didn't fit in this first time on the bus......These ladies have been doing this for years together.....But it gets easier every year, once you get to know the laides a little bit better.....Hopefully they'll consider inviting me next year too(hint, hint Deby and Wanda!)...I think I'd like to do it again.....and maybe do a little more shopping next year...........

I certainly don't have any plans to pick up another bingo dauber until then!