First Time Online. Did you win?

Okay, so I’m embarrassed to admit that I was a little late to the game when it came to playing Mah Jongg online. I was definitely intimidated. I’ve only been playing for two years and that’s without having a regular weekly game.

I was getting my fill of the game while social distancing, playing Siamese Mah Jongg® for hours, once a week with my mom. However, while listening to Fern’s Mah Jongg Mondays podcast I kept hearing her mention playing online and using our Mah Jongg Highlighters to improve her speed and skill. So I decided I had to give it a solid try.

First, I helped my mom sign up to play online. We navigated around the site and figured out how to play an entire game. And she was off! I watched as she played her first game, was very happy, hooked and low and behold, won! Hmmmm. Cool.

In the back of my mind I was thinking, “Do these online Mah Jongg games let everyone win their first game, to break them in, ease their nerves, and get them hooked? Or was my mom just that skilled and lucky? We went back to playing Siamese together after that one game but she was excited and planned on playing online again later that night.

The next day I signed up to play Mah Jongg online and used the same site, Myjongg.net. Remember It’s been a while since I’ve danced the Charleston so I was a little nervous. I clicked Start game.

I began muddling my way through the Charleston as the game was leading me and speeding me along. I just ignored the annoying flashing, “Waiting on you!” signal and passed and passed.

Finally, the game began. I placed my Mah Jongg Highlighters over a couple of hands as I waited for my tiles to come in. Joker, 3 Bam, Joker and “Mah Jongg!”. I got Mah Jongg. Hmmm. Seriously?

Well that’s great but did the site let me win because it’s my first game ever, just like my mom’s first time online?

So that’s the curious question I want all of you who are playing online these days on various sites to consider. Did you win the very first time you played Mah Jongg online?

I think it’s clever for the online Mah Jongg game sites to do this. I certainly felt confident afterwards and wanted to play another game right away. So whose the injured party? I’m happy and still playing online.