Mensa Writings

Confessions of an RG Junkie

©2002 Beth Weiss, Published in the January 2003 MPULSE, The Dayton Area Mensa Newsletter

What is the appeal of RGs?   As I write this, I’m eagerly looking forward to the Pittsburgh RG.  I’m even going to miss Games Night at John’s to attend it.  It’s only been a month since I had a great time at the Columbus RG.  The Dayton RG was in April, and Central Indiana’s RG was in January.  I wouldn’t want to say I’m turning into an RG junkie, but perhaps I am.  After all, the only reason I missed SEMMantics in May was pain from a lower back injury, and I have plans to attend HalloweeM in Chicago (well, actually Arlington Heights, but that’s close) in early November, and if I can figure out the logistics, Cincinnati’s RG in December as well.

But there is hope for me.  The Queen’s Croquet in June wasn’t an RG (and I was one of the walking wounded there, anyway).  And I’m taking my kids to the Central Indiana OG (Outdoor Gathering) the weekend of September 28^th.  That’s not an RG—it’s an OG.  We’re staying in cabins, not a hotel—and that means it’s not an RG, because Yvonne has defined RGs as taking place at hotels.  And the Focused Gathering on relationships the weekend of October 4^th is definitely not an RG, even if it will take place at a hotel. 

Okay, so perhaps I’m quibbling over terms.  Mensa has started really filling in my weekends, though—and I’m lucky that it has.  I’ve tried to dissect it; what exactly do I find so appealing about RGs?

It could be the constant games in the Games Room.   It’s not uncommon for people to play hearts until 5:00 a.m.  (double deck cancellation hearts, to be precise—lots more social than ‘regular’ hearts).  I’ve played in the euchre tournament at every event I’ve been to—and even won in Indianapolis.  I’ve never played one of the rail games, but probably will someday; they’re popular enough there has to be something to it.

It could be the dances.  In Indianapolis, the DJ was late, so people raided their cars for CDs, found a boom box, and danced anyway.  And when the DJ left (too early in some people’s opinion), we went back to the boom box.  In other cases, I don’t know when the DJ stopped; I wore out before that!  But where else do I get to dance The Time Warp or watch The Locomotion going through the halls.  And even more importantly, play out the parts in Paradise By the Dashboard Light?  A younger crowd might not appreciate it, but I’m just in the right age group for the music range; it’s all stuff I danced to in school.

It could be Boingy Boingy in the swimming pool.  That could get addictive, even though I’ve only participated once. 

It could be the food.  It could definitely be the food.  Hospitality always seems full of something I want to nosh on.  Heck, they do better at that than I manage in my own kitchen.  I’m already learning that every RG has its own “feel”, and its own slant on edibles, but nobody ever goes hungry.

It could be the programs, or it could if I could tear myself away from food and games and the swimming pool long enough to go to many of them!

It could be the hugs.  I’ve tried green dots with a “G” (for gentle), but it doesn’t really matter; there’s no shortage of hugs even when I don’t wear any dots at all.  And they’re such warm hugs, so friendly.

It could even be the backrubs.  I picked the right seat at dinner Saturday night in Columbus, and got several neck and shoulder rubs from people who were waiting in line to get their food.

Except for maybe the hugs J though, I think those are all incidental; I could give up one or the other of them with just a wistful glance.  It’s the people, of course.  It’s the late night conversations while walking in circles around the hotel parking lot.  It’s the people that make the games so much fun, and Boingy Boingy only works with great people.  It’s the quiet chat in Hospitality when you can’t sleep and neither can someone else, and you find something you both have in common.  And all those hugs and backrubs only feel so good because they come from really special people.

So, that’s what I find so appealing about RGs, and why I’m quickly turning into an RG addict.  Fortunately, as addictions go, this one is good for me; it leads to endorphins and other wonderful stuff, and it’s a great addiction to have.