All Day Bingo

Old Folks Love Bingo!

What is it about old people and bingo? If all old people were surveyed about their favorite hobby, what do you bet that bingo would be right up there?

Granting their 'hobbies list' would be woefully restricted on account of advanced age, they could still keep themselves busy and amused doing other things. Gardening perhaps? Nah, too dull. Ostrich farming? Too dangerous. Skeet shooting? Too loud. Learning to play the piano? Time consuming. Origami? Too labor-intensive.

Old people need something exciting yet safe, risky yet rewarding, something that is relaxing, fun and most especially, something that would make them shout at the top of their lungs, making them feel youthful again. Hmm, let me think hard…bingo!

Bingo, exciting? Well if you think about it, any game of chance could be very exciting. Add to it, the element of competition, then you've got yourself an addicting vice you'd be looking forward to every waking hour. Bingo is risky. I did say that didn't I? Sure. Albeit the risk is very little, still, it's there. You buy yourself a card, or cards for that matter, and you run the risk of losing. The rewarding part, of course, comes from winning. It may even be doubly rewarding if you play with only one card and come out victorious. I could imagine the wide grin of a sexagenarian shouting "bingo!" holding a solitary card amidst envious stares of bitter peers holding multiple cards, and thinking…losers!

Bingo is relaxing. You do use your hands, eyes and ears for this game, but that's just about it. You hold your marker, listen what number would be called out, and stomp on that particular number. Oh, and of course, you would want to use your vocal chords every once in a while, to shout bingo! The game is also fun and enjoyable. If a game could keep grandpa and grandma awake for a couple of hours, sitting in a comfortable chair on a lazy afternoon, that game is fun.

Everybody gets old. Right now, young people are preoccupied with computers, video games, sports, dating, fast cars and fast bucks. But does anybody think of what hobbies to take up in the twilight of their life? That idea may seem frivolous but being impassioned about something makes living at an advanced more palatable, pleasurable even.

A game like bingo may just be a game, but as I look at these seasoned people, their faces illuminated with fervid anticipation, as they await the next letter-number combination, I think to myself, I do have something to look forward to.