Greetings and salutations from your brainstorming Bubbe. I’m always looking for any ideas and tricks to make this card easier for you to learn, thereby helping you become a better player.
While my blogs tend to be long-winded, I'll try to keep this one light and breezy. I had another epiphany Sunday morning, and while it only helps for the WIND combinations on the card, it is an invaluable tool for remembering them!
Remember that (as far as I've ever seen, going back to 2003 and before) the NMJL convention is to keep the long-E's together: green Dragons, even numbers, and East/West. The opposite is also true: red Dragons, odd numbers, and North/South go together.
On the 2021 card, I've pointed out that there are always an equal number of North and South in any particular hand. Likewise, whenever there are East, there are the same number of Wests. (Oh, don't @me about there only being one wind used in Q #1, I would hope that goes without saying...)
What just dawned on me was that, **on this year's card**, with the exception of NEWS, if all four Winds are represented in a hand, the North and South always outnumber the East and West.
NNN EE 2021 WW SSS (2021 #4)
NNNN EEE WWW SSSS (WD #1)
FFFF NNN EE WW SSS (WD #3)
NNN E W SSS DDD DDD (WD #7)
FF NN E W SS 11 11 11
If you keep those simple rules in your head
* the long E's
* N = S
* E = W
* N,S > E,W
you've basically mastered every Wind hand including the "extras" scattered throughout the 2021 card. Bubbe hopes these tips and the wild winds of fortune carry you to victory!
Remember, if you have questions or comments, you can always email me at bubbefischer@gmail.com … and if you want more Bubbe wisdom, you can use that email to order my book, Searching for Bubbe Fischer—mention my blog and get a special price!
Talk to you soon.
Bubbe
Brilliant!
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