boredom sparks creativity

Question: what do two people do when it's too cold to go outside, you don't want to read, you've watched all the movies, you've played cards way too many times, and you're completely bored? Answer: You make your own monopoly game! Yes, that's right. We decided to craft our own game after having passed up buying the overpriced board game at the Saga Toy R Us, and having a failed online game attempt. We looked up the Seattle version of the game and then exchanged a few of the properties for a few of our own ideas. Additionally, Maurice rewrote all of the chance and community chest cards. Hours and hours (spread out over three days) of cutting, idea tossing, coloring, pasting, handing cramping writing, etc have ended in a nicely polished game that is so cool it will be going home with us in the end!!

Check it out!















Also, you gotta read some of these cards that Reese wrote. I contributed a few ideas, and a special thanks to Brittany for a few of hers, but most of it is the cleverness of my husband.

Community Chest selections:
-Settle a lawsuit out of court. Pay $150 and buy them a new dog.
-Got inspired by President Jimmy Carter! Start and endowment. Pay $100... and get liberal college students on summer break to build your next house.
-Low wages! No benefits! Yesss! Move labor overseas. Due to reduced costs, Collect $145.
-Your shady dealings finally catch up with you. Go to Jail, punk! And don't even thinkg of taking $200 for passing GO.
-"Help to governor with a "problem". Someday you may call upon him to do a favor. Get out of Jail free. (and that day may never come).

Chance selections:
-Caffeine time! Go to Starbucks and get your fix! Pay $15. (thanks Britty).
-One too many dead bodies, cat-sized rats, and fires are found in your establishments. The city's got to condemn it. Sell back on house/hotel back the bank at half value.
-Schmooze a rich powerful windbag you secretly despise. Pay $25... and plot his comeuppance!
-Time to be a weasel! Strike a deal with the justice department to cover your own butt. Send another player to jail.
-Goose liver! Brand names! Fish eggs. Eurocrap! Only the best for this guest. If it's gaudy, firvolous, or wasteful, they need it! Pay an extra $50 to the owner of the next property you stay at.
-You acquire a picture of one of the other players commiting an act so foul their own mother would punch them in the mouth. Don't pay rent on the next property visited. ...oh, it's foul...
-Activists demanding envirofriendly facilities. Pay $25 per house, $100 per hotel... for solar cells to shut the hippies up!
-You're caught speeding. ...and not wearing a seatbelt. ...and carrying a kilo of pure columbian coke. Go directly to Jail. No passing GO for you!
-Insider tip on starter company's stock pays off! Collect $150. ...and once again fight the realization you are an immoral selfish, materialistic, shallow, shell of a person.

Those were just some of my favorites. :D

I got my booty kicked when we first played, with two players a piece. Perhaps tonight I'll do better. Oh yeah, and an intruiging extra rule:
when there is more than one player per person, there is a role of the dice when trading goes on between that person's players in order to avoid sketchy trading between companies owned by the same person. The role determines whether the business transaction went unnoticed, or whether the dodgey trading IS noticed and the players are sent to jail, the companies are confiscated from both players and then auctioned off. Ohhhh... tricksy!!