A Game Similar to Gin Rummy (but More So with Homefield Advantage)

This is Pia Kimh, as I met her the other day at the Toronto Airport, just off the plane returning from Kalimpong via Kolkata and Heathrow. The twenty-two-hour flight didn't do much to calm her rage; on the contrary, she was even more upset than when she left the Great Hall of Rishi Bankim Chandra.

But let me start at the beginning: a week ago, Pia and her three teammates traveled to the Southeast Asian Regional Mah Jongg Tournament, as winners of the North American Open Grand Prix of October last. The name of their team, as entered in the Open, was "My Husband is Pregnant" to show a sense of humor and as a social comment. They were magnificent; their technique, intuition, skills, and knowledge of statistics carried them through qualifiers and finals. They won diplomas, a modest cash prize, a horrific gilded trophy, and tickets for "the Big Show in Kalimpong". They went to "The Duke of Earl" for celebratory pints and googled Kalimpong. 

Once arrived in North Bengal and checked into the Dream Palace Barsana, they went to the Great Hall, registered, attended the draw, signed the disclaimers, paid the fees, and received their badges. The team name was quite puzzling to the organizers, and they asked if there was any other name they could use. Pia told them they were also known as ”Horny Zombie Chicks”.  The registrar said that she doesn't even know what that means, and after hearing Pia's explanations, during which she clutched her pearls tighter and tighter, she said in a low voice that "My Husband is Pregnant" will be on the official list.

Pia & Co. ruthlessly demolished the competition. There was a definite language barrier in the normal interaction among players during breaks, waiting for the next round. The Canadian Laowais didn't get even a nod or a smile as they all qualified for the knock-out round and the final placing first, third, fourth, and fifth in the individual rankings. They won, thus, the team title by a large margin. After the finals, before the award ceremony, the organizing committee called an emergency meeting to deal with a challenge filed by several local teams for contravening rule 2A (behaving in a manner ungracious and discourteous towards opponents). At the conference, Pia was told that some were offended by the flippant gender flipping in the team name. It was claimed that the wording caused discomfort, embarrassment, and mental distress, leading to an inability to focus on the game. The Canadians were accused of having acted deliberately, with forethought and malice, to create an unfair advantage. All individual team members are deducted sufficient points to forfeit the cash prizes, diplomas, and medals for bringing the tournament in disrepute. 

Pia's team stormed out of the building in blind fury, picked up their bags, and drove to  Bagdogra Airport, with the intention of getting roaring drunk waiting for their flight. Alas, the bar does not serve alcohol.