Games Afternoon at Presbyterian New Church celebrates 20 years of fun

Ian Barrow creates a word, watched by Diane O'Callaghan (left), Maureen Scott and Audrey Greenwood. One word they used was jape, which means a joke or prank. Photo / Judith Lacy

What does "ze" mean? Would a vegan use aquafaba? And the most pressing question of all - how can you finish a game of Monopoly in less than five hours?

Presbyterian New Church's Games Afternoon provides the opportunity for all ages to explore these questions.

The Games Afternoon turned 20 this year and the most popular games are Scrabble, Monopoly and Rummikub.

Co-ordinator Reita Barrow says the afternoon was previously known as Vintage House Party and it was established as a place where people could come and feel included. It was started by her and Elaine Strange, who died in 2015.

The Games Afternoon was initially held once a month, but there was demand for more frequent playing.

"Somebody said 'I would rather play Scrabble more often than once a month'," Barrow says.

Asked what has kept her going all these years, Barrow replies the enjoyment people get from attending and the banter that's exchanged.

They play a quick version of Monopoly with no going to jail. Instead of paying the bank, money is put in the middle for players to collect if they land on free parking.

"It just creates more fun," Barrow says.

Rummikub is a numbers game in which players have to create runs in the same colour or the same number but different colours. The object of the game is to get rid of all your tiles.

Accompanying Maureen Scott, Ian Barrow, Audrey Greenwood and Diane O'Callaghan in their game of Scrabble was the Collins Scrabble Dictionary. The 2019 edition has plenty of te reo Māori words plus English words growing in usage.

It's chocka with words you probably didn't know existed, especially two-letter ones.

"It's amazing, you think 'is that a word' and you look it up and it's in there," Barrow says.

Ze is a gender-neutral personal pronoun while aquafaba is the water in which chickpeas have been cooked, used as a substitute for egg whites.

And yes, the interjection "ew", used to express disgust, can be used in Scrabble.

The Details
What: Games Afternoon
When: first and third Thursdays of month, 1.30-3.30pm
Where: Presbyterian New Church Community Centre, 117 College St
Entry: free, tea/coffee and biscuits included