🧨️ Happy Mah Jongg Monday!️
AROUND THE TABLE by Dottie
My granddaughter Lila got here Saturday, put her bag down, and told me she’s really good at this now.
She’s nine. She said it the way you’d report the weather.
So we played. She lost the first hand, and the one after it, and then Hal completed a Singles and Pairs hand, the first one I’ve seen him get on this Card, and so she lost a third time.
She took it about as well as you’d expect from someone who’d announced differently at the door.
Here’s the part I had to explain, and I’d like to tell you I did it gracefully. I did not. I told her that half of it is what you do and half of it is what you pick, and nobody has ever figured out how to fix the second half. That you can play a hand exactly right and still not win it, and that this has happened to every person at the table.
She said she plays a lot better when it’s against bots.
Then she asked if we were doing the cookies before or after the next hand.
Pour the coffee. Let’s go.
— Dottie
Here’s a quick preview of today’s issue. Scroll down to read each section in full.
🏆 Behind the Tiles — Think like a winner. Join the Club.
💡 Table Wisdom — Why it’s called the Charleston.
🖐🏻 A Hand to Play — Which Section gives you the best start?
🛒 Winning Picks — Care for hard-working hands.
🦻🏻 Hear Every Tile Called: A hearing tip worth knowing about.
🎥 Max’s Minute — Do the Winds have to be in order?
🪧 From Our Sponsor — A tennis newsletter for women.
🥠 Ask Auntie — The table that won’t call its tiles.
📸 Spotlight — A first tournament, fall-themed.
🎂 Birthdays — This week’s AMJA members.
🙋🏻♀️ A Free Strategy Session — See if we called your name.
🏁 Milestones — Progress inside The Winning Hand app.
… and more!
👀 Get Inside the Head of a Player Who Wins 👀
When new players call Destination Mah Jongg to ask how they’ll know they’re tournament ready, Fern Oliphant starts with a question of her own: “Have you ever played in a one-day tournament?”
Join the Mahj Insiders Club this week and you’ll hear the rest of her answer Wednesday. September has five Wednesdays, so Club members get a bonus episode of Behind the Tiles with Fern and Mister Mahjong, Andrew Keeler. You’ll hear why she sends new players to their neighborhood tournaments first, why throwing into a hand with zero or one exposures costs you 10 points at Destination Mah Jongg, and why the curmudgeon at your table only gets 55 minutes of your time.
The rest of the year, a new episode of Behind the Tiles drops every Wednesday. A winning player sits down for a game and explains each decision as they make it: why they keep certain tiles, when they switch hands, when they stay the course. A different player takes the table each month, and you won’t find that anywhere else. Debbie Barnett is up in October.
Club members also get Unlimited Strategy Sessions ($99 value), where Phyllis and Max teach strategy live on Zoom twice a week.
How “Charleston” Got Its Name
The Charleston in Mah Jongg is unique to the American style of play, just as the Charleston was unique to Broadway in the 1920s.
Watch a clip of the dance and you’ll see the exuberant movements of arms and legs swinging from left to right.
There’s no documentation explaining how the passing portion of American Mah Jongg came to be called the Charleston. But Mah Jongg had its own American surge in the 1920s, so it’s possible the originators of the American style adopted the name to describe the ROLLOR motion of passing. Right, over, left. Left, over, right.
Who knows? The name stuck.
Last Week’s 🖐🏻 Hand to Play Results:
3,056 Insiders played, 79% chose right.
👉 See the correct answer & explanation here.
You can’t decide what to pass until you know which Section gives you the best shot.
Look at the deal below. Which Section would you play?
Choose your answer, then vote to see how your pick compares with other players. 👇
Which Section would you play?
Hands That Play All Night
You shuffle, rack, push, and pass for hours, and by fall the air starts working against your hands. This week takes care of them properly.
💫 Mah Jongg Tile Bracelet Little tiles on your wrist that fellow players spot from across the room. Light enough to wear through a whole game and pretty enough for dinner after. Wear it out →
🤍 Luxury Hand and Nail Treatment Thick enough to repair, light enough to use before you touch tiles, and the kind of formula that keeps working over weeks instead of minutes. This is the piece worth spending on. Treat your hands →
💆 Paraffin Wax Hand Spa Warm wax that eases stiff, aching joints the way the salon version does, in your own kitchen. Ten minutes and your hands loosen up for the whole evening. Melt the ache away →
🧤 Overnight Hand Mask Gloves Slip these on before bed and wake up with hands that feel like someone else took care of them. The fastest fix there is for cracked knuckles and rough cuticles. Wake up softer →
💅 Nail and Cuticle Cream Japanese camellia and jojoba oils strengthen soft, splitting nails and soften the cuticle at the same time. A dab at night is the entire routine. Nourish your nails →
Your hands do the work all season. Give them something back.
(As an Amazon Associate, The Mah Jongg Insider earns from qualifying purchases.)
The Future of Hearing Tech
Say hello to hear.com’s new IX hearing aid. This tiny, German-engineered hearing aid is taking the US by storm this year.
Why? Partly because it’s tiny. Like, secret-agent-device tiny. And partly because it boasts the world’s first-ever dual-processing system (with double the power comes double the clarity).
In non-science-y talk, you get maximum speech clarity with minimal background noise. And you get it from a device so small, it hides completely behind your ear.
Ready to join the 540k+ who can hear with crystal clarity thanks to these game-changing hearing aids? Take advantage of hear.com’s 45-day no-risk trial.
👉 Mah Jongg is more fun when you can hear every call.
[CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE]
(This section is sponsored by hear.com.)
Max takes two questions from Insiders and answers both in a quick 60-second video.
🕔 This week’s questions:
1️⃣ If a player claims a tile for an exposure, then realizes one too many tiles were exposed, can she correct that?
2️⃣ Under Winds-Dragons Line 6, do the Winds need to be in the order shown on the Card?
🎥 [Click to watch]
Have a question for Max?
🎤 [Click to leave a voicemail]
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The Winning Hand App is included with Association membership.
Watch the walkthrough.
⬅️ Last Week’s Question
We have a player who either chews gum loudly or moves hard candy around in her mouth. We do not know her well enough to mention it discreetly beforehand and don’t want to embarrass her. Any suggestions?
- Carol C.
🥠 Auntie’s Advice 🥠
My friend, gum is not the trouble. Chewed quietly it bothers nobody. The noise is another matter, and that goes for hard candy just the same. But correcting a woman you barely know would sting longer than the noise ever will.
📢 Readers’ Responses 📢
🗨 I think there’s an important distinction here: not mentioning it isn’t necessarily about protecting her from feeling bad. It may actually be about protecting you from feeling uncomfortable having the conversation. It assumes she’ll be embarrassed, when she may simply be unaware that she’s doing it or that it’s bothering anyone.
If it were me, I’d discreetly tell her rather than let it become an issue behind her back. Something as simple as, “I wanted to mention something privately because I’d want someone to tell me, the chewing sounds can be a little distracting during the game. Do you mind not chewing gum or candies during the game? I hope you don’t mind me mentioning it.” And then move on as if the conversation was no big deal.
- Tracy V.
🗨 I suffer from dry mouth due to a health condition. Dry mouth can be caused by medications or other health conditions. If the gum chewing is that distracting to the group, I’d speak with the player privately, with a huge dose of compassion. Think about the degree of annoyance or distraction to the table before you approach her.
- Cathy G.
🗨 Just put some light background music on. This might take your attention away from her and help you focus on your game.
- Kelly W.
Whose response do you like best?
➡️ This Week’s Question
For a few weeks I’ve been playing with a new group of about 20 to 24. It’s advertised as American Mah Jongg, but one table in particular doesn’t verbalize calls for discards. A couple of them just grab a tile and then there’s an exposure on their rack. Their discards are often announced barely above a mutter, and a tile may be placed on the table without a word. I’ve said, “Oh, did you call that? I didn’t hear you.” “Where did that exposure come from?” “What did you discard?” I know Mah Jongg is a looking and listening game, but I’d like it to be and, not or. It’s exasperating. Any advice?
- Anonymous
🤗 Want to share your advice?
🤔 Have a Mah Jongg manners or table moment dilemma?
📩 Send it to Auntie: [email protected]
Our Mah Jongg group has a total of 8 players and we all go to the same Lutheran church! We love to play Mah Jongg sometimes at a local restaurant. They had a fall backdrop that we borrowed! We enjoy reading and learning more from The Mah Jongg Insider!
- Helen S.
"Fall for Mahj" was our group's first Mah Jongg tournament and it was extremely fun! The Greater Crystal Lake Area Women's Club (IL).
- Nancy T.
📸 Share your Mah Jongg moments!
Send us a photo and a quick note — big wins, themed nights, or fun group shots — for a chance to be featured.
📩 Email: [email protected]
The American Mah Jongg Association would like to wish these members a very Happy Birthday!
September 28
Beverly B. (TX), Carolyn C. (MO), Gale S. (NC), Joy P. (FL), Julie W. (WI), Kim G. (LA), Lynne J. (VA), Rhonda S. (FL), Cindy R. (OK)
September 29
Carole L. (KS), Debbie W. (GA), Denise B. (NV), Karin E. (NC), Linda C. (IA), Marie V. (FL), Marilyn M. (CA), Robin L. (AZ), Sandra L. (NY), Sharlyn C. (PA), Stephenie T. (TX)
September 30
Barbara F-L. (FL), Brenda L. (NJ), Brenn J. (CT), Carlie R. (TX), Celia H. (BC), Mary Anne K. (OH), Nancy C. (FL), Joanne K. (FL)
October 1
Janice S. (FL), Margaret M. (LA), Sally T. (SC), Lu D. (OH)
October 2
Catherine W. (MS), Cynthia S. (FL), Judy C. (IL), Linda D. (OH), Liz W. (FL), Nancy B. (AL)
October 3
Andrea F. (MI), Charlotte W. (CA), Judi M. (SC)
October 4
Becky S. (MS), Chrys H. (NM), Cindy M. (TX), Leigh M. (NC)
If your name is Dawn, enjoy a FREE Strategy Session 🙋🏻♀️ on us!*
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These milestones come from players using The Winning Hand, the practice app included with membership in the American Mah Jongg Association. [Join Here]
15,000+ members use it in different ways: To warm up. To stay sharp. Or simply to spend more time with the game you already love.
🔥🔥🔥🔥 400 games played
Nancy Bostwick
Susan H
🔥🔥🔥 300 games played
Judy Frame
🔥🔥 200 games played
Joanne Chaten
Tola Rissman
🔥 100 games played
Ticey Geyer
Rebecca Rives
Lsara Sides
👏 The more you play, the better your game gets.
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