What is solitaire and how do you play it?

Solitaire is a card game which can be played with only one player or with more players. There are hundreds of different ways to play solitaire and they can make the cold, rainy day very interesting, especially if you live by yourself.

It is funny that this request should happen to come up now because just two days ago I taught my 8 year old granddaughter three ways to play solitaire. I showed her the traditional solitaire, and she won it. I showed her 'Clock' solitaire, and she won it after the second try. I have played that one for days sometimes and never won it, guess she was very lucky. I also showed her how to play double hand solitaire. We had a lot of fun with that one. I also taight her how to play 'War' and 'Slap Jack'. She enjoyed them all and I think 'Clock Solitaire' and 'Slap Jack' were her favorites of them all. needless to say we had a very fun afternoon. It is funny too because most kids that age are not taught things like that anymore. Many parents are so wrapped up in their own world they do not take the time to play with their kids like I did mine when they were growing up. I played ball, croquet, cards, board games, and many other activities with my kids. I think there would not be so much meanness in the world by the younger generation if they had a little more positive attention paid to them. I also taught all three of my kids how to cook. My son now loves to cook and try new recipes. Only problem is, his wife takes advantage of it and has him cook most of the time because she never learned how to cook much of the basic stuff. She can read a recipe but she is not good at basic recipes that are usually remembered in the mind.

Well I see I got way off topic here so I should at least explain how to play 'Clock Solitaire' for those who do not know how or have never heard of it. Shuffle the cards (minus the jokers). Place them in a circle like the numbers on a clock. You will have twelve piles of four cards in the circle and one pile of four cards in the middle of the circle where the hands on the clock are. These cards are placed face down and the last card which would be placed in the middle is the first card you begin the game with. When placing the cards down on the table begin with the number one position and continue until you have placed the whole deck of cards on the table. I have uploaded a picture to show you what I am talking about. It is really quite simple once you get the hang of it.

Take the last card from the deck and look at it. Depending on what number it is, place it where it would be on a clock. Example, if it is a seven, place it in the seven position on the clock and place it face up under the other cards in that pile. You then take the top card from that pile and proceed with placing the cards where they belong on the clock, one at a time. Always remember to place the card face up under a particular pile and take the top card from that same pile to play next. The object of the game is to turn all of the numbers over around the clock before all four kings show up in the middle. This is a very fun game and can keep you busy for hours but you may need a lot of patience because it is one that may be hard to beat. You can get more information online and wikipedia is a great place to start. There are many, many different fun types of solataire to play so the fun never ends. Get tired of one, play a different one!

Have fun!!