It’s no exaggeration to say that Noosa woman Megan Marks loves Scrabble.
The woman known as ‘Mad Scrabbler Meg’ loves it so much she’s started the Noosa Scrabblers, a Scrabble club of sorts but with no committee, no cost and no weekly commitment – just a place where people can meet each week and play the game they love, meet new people or even learn to play.
Scrabble players come each Friday from 10am to 12pm to the Noosa Library to meet and play, socialise and have fun.
Meg supplied the library with 10 boards but no need to worry if there are not enough, she has 15 more (op shop finds and boards collected over the years) in storage at home if they are needed.
“I started the club just before Christmas and we’ve slowly had new people come,” the woman who also runs Scrabble workshops at Woodford Folk Festival said.
“The one thing the library staff and I both noticed was the giggling that went on between the players.
“Scrabble is a great way for shy people, seniors or mad word buffs to come together and relax for an hour or two in good company.”
“It’s one of those retro games that so many people have an association with,’ she said. “Everyone has played at one stage or another, and there’s either the word fascination or the nostalgia it brings out.
“So, if you are a serious Scrabbler, or someone who likes a social game, Noosa Scrabblers is for you. All age levels and experience welcome.”
For Meg, who has plans to one day travel the world with a friend just playing scrabble, the game is a great way to meet people and indulge in her love of words and sense of fun. Before going on holidays, she often paints an old canvas with a scrabble board, puts 100 tiles in a bag and takes it with her.
“It’s way more portable to take places,” she said.
“Then, if I meet someone towards the end of the trip who really likes Scrabble, I give it to them.
“I played a guy in Malayasia who was from Singapore. He had tattoos over his head, on his face, everywhere, and had never played Scrabble before but he loved it.
“Every day, he wanted me to play Scrabble with him out in the communal area, so I ended up giving him my little travel scrabble kit because I’m sure he’s playing it still. He was very sweet -terrifying when you first saw him, but then he became a big scrabbler.”
It’s not always easy to find a fellow scrabbler though, especially when there is a language barrier and Meg admits she became frustrated while travelling around Europe two years ago.
“I was dying for a game,” Meg, who says her nickname comes from being “a bit mad and a bit scrabbly” explained.
“Finally, I came across a game in Greece on a little-known beach. These people were playing but it was with Greek letters so I couldn’t play.
“But I’ve played in all sorts of places. I’ve played topless with my friend on the beach, we’ve played nude in her backyard next to the pool. We’ve played at the pub, we’ve played everywhere on holidays.
“When her kids grow up, we plan to travel and just play Scrabble around the world.
“In Malaysia we played using four languages on the same board. It doesn’t matter what language you play in, you’ve just got to trust each other.”
Surprisingly it wasn’t a game she played much as a child, instead finding her love for Scrabble through games with friends a few years back.
“It turns out I’m just a word freak,” she laughed.
So, does she have any particularly memorable moments playing the game?
“Recently the last seven letters I had was one I and six es, I really wanted to win that game and it was neck and neck and I was stuck with these six es,” she laughed.
“I can’t think of my most memorable word. My friend, her first word recently, where she used up seven letters, was clitoris. That was pretty memorable. Set the tone of the game,” she added giggling.
“See scrabble is not boring at all.
“You can have seriousness and fun at the same time.
“The library staff were shocked, the first couple of weeks, they just heard us giggling.
“It’s a bunch of older ladies at this stage, and some younger people. But the older ladies have been so thrilled, generally scrabblers can be a bit shy.
“Noosa is full of sports clubs but for the shy ones there’s not much out there. So, these ladies have come together and they just giggle. I realise it is more of community service more than just scrabble.”
The Noosa Scrabblers meet each Friday in the Library no cost and no obligation and all are welcome.
