Shin, shin, put one in!

Like yesterday, this bow is from TchotchkesDesigns.
The dreidel game is one that I'd have loved as a kid, because I loved (and still love) tops and because in a lot of versions of the game it's a chance to win chocolate!  If you're avoiding candy then raisins or pennies will suffice, but more often than not the gelt I've seen has been chocolate.  Playing dreidel isn't a necessity during Hanukkah like lighting the candles and saying the prayers is, but it's still a fun tradition.  Tradition, tradition...cue the music.

Yes, dreidel is a game my family would've liked, though if I know my sister like I do she'd have thrown a fit if she'd had to put one in.  LOL, fittingly, "shin" is one of the characters showing on my bow.  Looks like "gimel" is the other.  I have a hard time telling "gimel" and "nun" apart, but that looks like "gimel."
The rules of dreidel are pretty easy.  I think any number of people can play, but when play begins all are given an equal number of pieces, and they all pay a piece to the center pot.  Then it's time to spin.  The dreidel ideally should have flat sides, thus whatever side it lands on is...well, what you get!  Here's what the four characters look like.
See?  If you're a novice like me it's hard to tell "nun" and "gimel" apart!  In this case the two are a little easier to distinguish, but some fonts are NOT easy.  Anyway, the various symbols are as follows:
*"NUN" (far left) means that the player does nothing, and the next player has a turn.
*"GIMEL" (second left) means that the player gets everything in the pot.  I like to joke that "gimel" means "gimme!"
*"HEI" (second right) means half, and the player gets half the pot, or closest to half if the pot has an odd number of gelt.
*"SHIN" (right) means the player puts a piece in the pot, hence the chant "Shin, shin, put one in!"

I thought I'd read as a little kid that "shin" meant you lost half (or all) of what you gathered during the game.  Thank goodness I read up a little, LOL.  My sister REALLY would've had a fit if she'd had to cough it all up; she hated losing games.  Anyway, if a person DOES hit "shin" one too many times and loses everything, they either can ask for a loan from another player or are just SOL and have to quit.  The round is over when someone has won everything...sheesh, unless someone hits "gimel" right off the bat then the round probably takes forever!  Makes me think of Uno, LOL.  You think you're almost out, and then you end up having to draw four or goodness knows what.

So that's how you play dreidel.  And if you already knew how, I apologize...but that's how you play dreidel.  I personally had no clue how to play the game...or rather, I did, but I got some of the rules wrong.

Much love,
RagingMoon1987

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