San Francisco NABC 2007

Wednesday, November 21

We drove to San Francisco and checked into the Four Seasons apartment. It’s a three-bedroom three-bathroom apartment, with a full kitchen, living/dining room, etc. We stayed in the front guest bedroom.

Not fun: Not knowing the distance, we walked to the Hana Zen on Ellis, getting there so early that we walked back to the Four Seasons. During that hour, we saw more homeless people and beggars than on any of our recent 10- to 16-day trips to Europe. This pattern persisted for the duration. We don’t take care of our own.

After a pit stop, we headed out again and had dinner at the Hana Zen Japanese restaurant with our Albuquerque friends, Barbara and Jim:

Wed Nov 21: Us, Barbara and Jim

Bridge notes…

The tournament was the Fall National, but the right name is the North American Bridge Championships (NABC), sponsored by the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL).

Mostly, it ran like a big regional tournament, with awards of red and/or gold master points. A fraction of the sessions were NABC events, awarding platinum points. We thought platinum was useless for us, but someone said “It’s as good as gold.” The top players play NABC events; the top award was 200 platinum points.

Over 6000 players got points, between 0.10 and about 350. We were above average, but lots of people could only play a few days.

For us, the main advantage of playing a National is the scale: the wide choice of events. We could always find an event to suit our schedule and the availability of another pair for team events.

Terminology (for Chuck & Ellen): A “board” is a deck of cards, dealt, and kept in an aluminum holder so the same hands can be played by different players. That’s the basis for duplicate bridge. A session is usually 24 boards, and takes about 2 ½ to 3 hours to play. A session may consist of matches of 6 or 12 boards. An event takes one to four sessions, depending.

There are pair (2 player) events and several team (4 player) events. The team events are Swiss (6 board matches), Compact Knockouts (12 board matches), regular Knockouts (24 board matches), and Board-A-Match (B-A-M), which is actually 2 board matches in a pair-type movement. Some events have consolation rounds; others award consolation points for winning a match but losing the session.

Events are stratified: They divide the entrants into convenient-sized groups, based on prior master points, so you play against comparably-ranked people. Some events had 12 brackets. We were always in the bottom bracket. The brackets allow players like us to win something, and top players to win a lot. The best third, or maybe half, in a bracket win something, but even the top players lose half the time.

Thursday, November 22

Although we packed the car to the gunnels, we forgot a cooler with milk and such, so Thursday morning I made a round trip drive to Campbell.

We walked to the Marriott and registered for the tournament, getting our goodie bags, with a schedule, maps, a reading light, etc.

We played afternoon bridge (charity pairs, finishing third of five in C), then invited Kat and Joel over for drinks:

Thurs Nov 22: Mischel, Kat, Joel

They ended up staying for a Costco turkey roll Thanksgiving dinner:

Thurs Nov 22: Mischel, Joel, Kat

Friday, November 23

We played the 9 am Compact KO’s with Linda and Mayilyn C., got nothing. Then we tried the 1 pm regular KO’s with a pickup pair, and again got nothing.

About 5 pm Bob and Faye came over for drinks:

Fri Nov 23: Bob, Faye, Mischel

We played the 7:30 pm pairs and did well: we placed 1^st in C and 4^th in A in our section and 4^th in C overall, for 1.35 red points. For the section top, we got a prize: a little keychain flashlight.

Saturday, November 24

At the Marriott, we ran into several people from the San Jose bridge club: Randy and Mary, Keith & Carol, Bob and Nancy, and Marilyn B.; Bob and Faye were working the volunteer desk.

We tried the 1 pm pairs (session 1 of the event), and did well.

Now the story: Mischel played East, me West. On one board, North got the bid. When Mischel led a diamond, North asked what our lead convention was. I replied natural or standard. He asked what that meant. I said she likes diamonds. He said “DIRECTOR!” A director happened to be standing nearby, heard my explanation, and thought it was adequate. Of the first two diamond tricks, he takes one and I take one. Later, I led a third diamond, which Mischel trumped, and the contract went down 3 tricks.

Again: “DIRECTOR!” My temperature is rising, and I look at him and say “Go to hell” just when the director comes behind me. Pointing to me, he says “You, come with me.” So we have a little discussion away from the table, return, and I apologize to North. He also said North had no case, but that he would have to give me an infraction.

A while later came back with my “ticket”:

Sat Nov 24: My ticket

Fortunately, the ¼ board penalty didn’t affect the outcome. I concluded, because of North’s more-or-less terrible partner, that he was known to be abrasive; they didn’t do well.

Was it worth it? Yes.

Sat Nov 24: master bedroom, Mischel

Sat Nov 24: master bedroom, cat

Mischel and I had a nice dinner at Johnny Foley’s on O’Farrell. She had the prime rib and I had a filet. Good.

Then we played session 2 of the pairs event, and did well enough to get 2.03 red points.

From the Marriott lobby, you take an escalator down to the Golden Gate meeting rooms, with the smaller games, then another escalator further down to the Yerba Buena meeting rooms. This is the lower level:

Sat Nov 24: Marriott, Yerba Buena level

The Yerba Buena meeting rooms, mostly on the right side, are huge, each holding one or two hundred card tables.

After a while, I figured out that the Golden Gate area is actually under Mission Street, and the Yerba Buena area is about 40 feet down and across the street, under the Metreon complex.

Later, back at the apartment, my laptop died. The error messages made it look like a hard drive problem, but I think it’s software: before leaving Campbell I had allowed McAfee to fence off a (necessary) Windows component.

Sunday, November 25

We tried the 9 am regular KO’s with Michael and Allan, and won the match, so we qualified to continue tomorrow at 9 am.

Mischel and I had lunch at Out the Door, the Westfield mall operation of the Slanted Door restaurant in the Ferry Building.

Then we shopped for cheese and crackers and stuff for a little cocktail party later, and went back to the apartment to set up.

Joel, Kat, Bob and Faye came over to the apartment between bridge sessions:

Sat Nov 25: Mischel, Joel, Faye, Kat, Bob

At 7:30 pm, we played in a pairs game, and won the bottom bracket, getting 1.62 red points and another section top prize: more tiny flashlights.

Monday, November 26

In one of the Golden Gate rooms, they had set up tables with “screens”, actually diagonal wooden dividers, to keep players from cheating in some big NABC event:

Mon Nov 26: Tables with “screens”

At 9 am we played the second session of the KO event with Michael and Allan. We lost (were knocked out), but got 0.77 red points for the first session win.

At 1 pm we play Compact KO’s with Jo and Erma. Jo is our neighbor and both play with us at the San Jose club and with Mischel in social bridge games. We won the first match but lost the second, and got knocked out.

We lost the second match to a team including one woman obviously on drugs (Prozak or something) who moved at half speed, and a man in the Emergency Room who was replaced by a random pick-up player at the last minute.

Mon Nov 26: Jo and Erma

Between sessions, we got sandwiches to go from the Marriott sports bar with Kat, Joel, Ron, Ken, Stephanie and Nathan, and took them to the apartment:

Mon Nov 26: Stephanie, Ken, Ron, Nathan

At 7:30 pm we played pairs, placed 4^th of 5 in C, and got nothing.

Tuesday, November 27

Mischel found out Fia hurt her back. The plan was to have Ben and Fia stay in the back guest bedroom for a few days, but they couldn’t do it.

At 1 pm we tried KO’s again with Jo and Erma, and again were knocked out.

We went with them to the Westfield mall:

We had a dinner reservation at the Lark Creek Steak House in the Westfield mall, but we got there at 5 and they didn’t open until 5:30, so we had sandwiches at a so-so place called Cocola, and walked back to the apartment.

Tues Nov 27: Mischel, Erma, Jo

The Bonk

That evening we played single-session (aka loser) Swiss, I guess with Jo and Erma. We lost all four 6-board matches.

At the start of the third match, a player at the next table arrived late, and in her hurry knocked over the sign standard near us. It fell on Mischel’s head. She grabbed her head. I stood over the table and grabbed her head. Two or three directors came right over to help. Mischel was hurt, but not badly, maybe a drop of blood, and a sore red spot where the plexiglass top hit a glancing blow. One of the directors offered water. After five minutes or so, things settled down and we started the third match.

Her head hurt for a day or two, but there was no swelling.

We lost the match, but when I reconciled my point tally with ACBL’s, I found they had given us a win, for 0.35 red points.

Wednesday, November 28

At 9 am, we played Compact KO’s with Ron and Ken. We got two wins, so we continued the next day.

For lunch, Mischel and I got sandwiches from the Starbucks in the Marriott lobby.

At 1 pm, we started a regular KnockOut event with Art and Colette, in bracket 10 of 10. We started in a round robin and got two wins, so continued that evening.

We walked to Westfield, got takeout stuff for dinner, and took it to the apartment:

Wed Nov 28: Mischel, Art, Colette

Wed Nov 28: John and Mischel

At 7:30 pm, we played the next KnockOut session with Art and Colette, and got another win, so continued the next afternoon.

Thursday, November 29

At 9 am, we played the second Compact KO session with Ron and Ken. With a loss and a win, we placed third in the bottom bracket, for 2.07 red and 1.04 gold points.

Lunch was sandwiches in the sports bar.

At 1 pm, we played the third KO session with Art and Colette, lost, placed 3^rd / 4^th, and got 3.42 red and 1.71 gold points.

We went back to the apartment, took a cab to North Beach, and after walking around a while had dinner at the Bocce Cafe.

Then, along with several other San Jose club members, saw Beach Blanket Babylon:

Wed Nov 28: John and Mischel

We’d seen it before, of course, but they change the musical/comedy skits to stay current.

They had the dancing Christmas trees, the gay poodles, Hillary Clinton, the hat with all of San Francisco, etc. Still a good show.

The headpieces come in three sizes: small, a big wig; medium, which is on a frame supported by the waist, and large, which is a frame on wheels worn/pushed by the character.

On the minus side, they still don’t have reserved seats. You buy a ticket for a section (floor, side balcony, or back balcony), and then just take a good seat if you’re early, or bribe an usher.

Friday, November 30

We walked to an Asian art store on Market Street, then to the MoMA on Third.

Fri Nov 30: MoMA ticket

Fri Nov 30: Mischel at the MoMA

The featured artist was Olafur Eliasson. I liked his geometric stuff, but didn’t get the frozen car that took two years to make. It was a car-shaped metal frame with wheels, covered with icicles, in a refrigerated room.

At 1 pm, we played the 2-session NABC Swiss qualifying event with Michael and Elenalani.

In the first session we played against this nice little old man, who (we pieced together later) is 91-year-old Dr. George Rosenkranz, inventor of the birth control pill, ex-CEO of Syntex (in Palo Alto), and master bridge player. He divides his time between Palo Alto and Mexico City.

On Sunday, he remembered Mischel, and stopped to chat for a while.

At 7 pm, we played the second NABC Swiss session, ending with one match win, one tie, and the rest losses, for 0.80 platinum points.

Saturday, December 1

In the morning, I was outside the Four Seasons and noticed a lot of taxis waiting. Soon enough, the first of three groups of 16 treasure hunters, in teams of four, ran out of the Four Seasons to start the hunt. It’s a San Francisco thing.

A Four Seasons thing: Once I remarked to a doorman that a Lamborghini had been driven up from the garage (where our car stayed parked in Monty’s spot), to the motor entrance. He asked: “Which one? Black, silver or yellow?”

Around noon, at the Marriott, we saw Bill Gates (Microsoft co-founder) on the escalator. He was in the 1 pm KO’s we played with Michael and Elenalani. We won the first session by 1 point.

Sat Dec 1: sunset

About 5:30, Mischel and I headed out for dinner. We went across Market and up Ellis and stopped at the first place, John’s Grill.

Sat Dec 1: Mischel, Maltese Falcon, John

Mischel knew, I didn’t, that John’s Grill features THE stolen and recovered Maltese Falcon. I thought two or three falcon statues were made for the movie, but what do I know.

Anyway, we went back for the KO session 2 at 7:30. We won again, so continued tomorrow.

PS:

Mischel spotted this item in Leah Garchik’s column in the Wed (12-4) SF Chronicle:

Bill Gates was in town last week for the big national bridge tournament and had dinner at John’s Grill with a party that included two-time world bridge champion Sharon Osberg. A bodyguard sat nearby.

I usually read just the “Public eavesdropping” part of that column. This was the same day:

“So, if your mom is having sex with the therapist, does that count as a session?”

--- One high school student to another.

My favorite:

“The only time I refused a cocktail, I misunderstood the question.”

--- One young woman to another.

Sunday, December 2

At 10 am, we played KO session 3, and won again.

At 2 pm, we played KO session 4, the finals, and lost, but finished second in our (bottom) bracket, for 5.73 red and 2.87 gold points. That’s about a third of the points we won in the whole tournament:

17.34 red

5.62 gold

0.80 platinum

23.76 total

Excellent.

The entry fee was about $16 a session, and we played 24 sessions over 10 days, so that works out to about $16 a point to the ACBL, plus meals and transportation. Fortunately, our lodging and parking were free.

To celebrate, we walked to Jeanty at Jack’s.

We were never lost, but we did make a couple wrong turns.

Sun Dec 2: Dinner at Jeanty at Jack’s

Mischel had their famous tomato soup, and the beef stew. I had a very good endive salad, with pear, gorgonzola and walnuts, and a ribeye steak. We shared a 2002 Chateau Sant Valery, and had crepes suzette for desert. Good.

Sun Dec 2: Bank of America plaza

We walked back to the Four Seasons.

Monday, December 3

Pack, clean, drive home.

Here are a couple left-over pictures:

Cabbies talking on Market St.:

Tues Nov 27: Cabbie: “No! N-E-O!”

At the apartment:

Fri Nov 23: Sunset