by Audra H. Anders for The Aha! Connection
First the food, then the fun! Jenn and I picked North Italia Atlanta Perimeter because well, that’s what we were hungry for! I realize Peggy and I took Coach Bass and Coach Hill there already but I was craving it again! Jenn had the Tuscan Kale salad with Salmon and I had the soup of the day (Tomato Basil) and the Arugula and Avocado salad. We both LOVED our lunches. Check out their full lunch menu here.
Now for the fun! I had not seen Jenn in years. Jenn’s youngest and my oldest did not grow up going to school together but are the same age and, sometime around 2015 or so, they ended up on a travel baseball team together so….the Martels and the Anders families met for the first time. We were just on that one team together for one year so our paths have not crossed often but we have several common friends and have kept up a little from afar.
She came to the forefront of my attention last month when I discovered she has started her own business teaching American Mahjong! One of my bestie neighbors and I have been discussing starting a neighborhood Mahjong group so I reached out to Jenn immediately and invited her to lunch so I could learn all about her new business…..Atlanta Mahjong Mentors!
In case you’ve been living under a rock, I’ll go ahead and tell you that Mahjong has become so so so popular! I remember a few years ago being at Crema at the same time a group of women were taking up almost the entire restaurant playing a tile game and hearing the word Mahjong for the first time. They appeared to be having so much fun. Then one of my college besties reminded me she learned to play from her mother and grandmother and is now playing with a group of her neighbors. Then….last Christmas break my youngest son and his Mobile, Alabama girlfriend showed up at my house with her mom’s fancy Oh My Mahjong tile set and proceeded to teach Hubby and me to play. It is so darn fun! And so challenging…..and we all just loved it but sadly I’ve not played once since last Christmas. That must change immediately!
Just so you know this is not typically a “drinking game”. I personally am looking for something fun to do with friends that doesn’t involve wine! Don’t get me wrong, I sure do love my wine but I need something to SHARPEN brain cells at this point in my life! Jenn laughed when I told her this, but said she agrees that it would be close to impossible to learn Mahjong while drinking!
Back to Jenn….she grew up on Long Island amongst a family who loved playing games. She’d heard of Mahjong from some of her friends but didn’t learn to play until about 4 years ago. Her Mahjong foursome played a few times per month and then some of her other friends got wind of the game and Jenn taught them how to play. Now she has two regular groups and plays as often as she can find the time. More and more people started asking her to teach them which made it difficult to balance teaching Mahjong and finding hours to actually work at her real job.
Problem solved….make teaching Mahjong her career! Jenn just lights up when discussing how her favorite hobby has turned into a fulfilling entrepreneurship. It fits her so perfectly as she loves playing games, loves teaching/training, and gains energy and personal fulfillment from being around other women!
So….if you are interested in learning more about Mahjong or starting a group among friends here are a few nuggets I learned from Jenn:
- Learning in groups of four is perfect. She can teach eight but feels groups of four seem to learn faster and retain the information best. If you have a group of eight don’t worry….she’ll bring a helper!
- She structures Mahjong training into two and sometimes three sessions:
- Session 1 is a “Basics” class that lasts around 2-2.5 hours
- Session 2 should be about a week later if possible and is a “Strategy” class that also lasts around 2-2.5 hours
- Session 3 is a “Guided Game Play” refresher type class in which she lets the group take the lead and she is the mentor/guide for the players
- Jenn is a certified Oh My Mahjong teacher and brings everything you need to her sessions (the dragons, the winds, the pushers, the tiles, the mat etc.). She also has handouts to help you later when you are on your own!
Doesn’t this sound like so much fun?
If you want to learn about the history of Mahjong, here’s a great article from Time Magazine
Here’s what AI has to say when asked “What is Mahjong?”
Mahjong is a tile-based game of skill, strategy, and luck that originated in China in the 19th Century. It’s played with a set of 144 tiles that are drawn and discarded until one player has a winning hand. The game is similar to rummy and is sometimes called mahjong rummy to distinguish it from mahjong solitaire. The name mahjong literally means “sparrow”.
If you want to learn how to play, contact my friend Jenn!
Jenn Martel
Atlanta Mahjong Mentors
atlantamahjongmentors@gmail.com
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