When is a pot luck dinner not just that? When it’s also a Surprise Birthday Party for someone who isn’t there and a Swiss Team Bridge Session where everyone earns master points (or fractions thereof).

Of course, this happened Thursday evening (January 29), and the surprise was on all of us when Mary Ann Dufresne didn’t arrive. Jutta O'Connell got her on the phone and we all gloriously sang “Happy Birthday” to her. Her cake was saved for Friday’s game where she did appear to blow out the candles before we all enjoyed the cake.

With Annabelle directing the Swiss session, each of seven teams managed to play all of the other six teams, and like a child’s birthday party, everyone went home with a little prize in the form of a master point (or as I said, a fraction thereof).

If you haven’t tried one of these pot luck dinner/Swiss game combinations, you are missing excellent food and lots of fun. Stay tuned for announcement of the next one; we may even find someone else to surprise.