Happy Valentine's Day!

Ever wonder how that heart symbol we see on our playing cards came to be associated with romance, symbolic love, playing cards and Valentines?

In the western mind, the heart symbol was already firmly entrenched by the Middle Ages, but its source may date back to the Silphium plant and classical antiquity which was used as a medicine and seasoning. The Romans considered the Silphinum worth its weight in silver, and sale of Silphinum formed the economic base in Cyrenaica (modern day Libya).

One of the plant's various and most important medicinal qualities was as a contraceptive, and its seeds, as depicted on ancient coins, were a perfect heart shape. As time went by, those heart-shaped seeds may have morphed from a sexual connotation to a romantic one. The plants grew in a narrow strip of land, and have now probably become extinct -- perhaps due to over-grazing, climate change and over-harvesting.

The exact Saint Valentine associated with St. Valentine's Day is somewhat fuzzy, but may be a first-century A.D. Roman priest who secretly performed marriages in order to exempt the bridegrooms from military conscription, thereby inconveniencing the Emperor Claudius. The Emperor was evidently "inconvenienced" enough to martyr Valentine in the cause of matrimonial "romance".

The heart symbol as used as a suit on playing cards came into common usage in France in the mid-15th century. Card games, invented in China as early as the 9th century, had spread westward through the Middle East and into Europe. Those early European playing cards were handmade and very expensive, playthings of the nobility and very wealthy. Various suits had been invented along the way, including Bells, Acorns and Swords, until the French settled on the four suits in modern usage.

The French also associated some of the face cards with figures from history, chivalry and the Bible. One of the most famous associations for the Queen of Hearts is, of course, the most dangerously insane inhabitant in Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland, whose interpretation of Zero Tolerance was instant decapitation ("Off with their heads!"). The lady would, I think, be in for instantaneous re-education at any sanctioned ACBL event.

At any rate, Happy Valentine's Day, Unit 223 members. Please remember to be a sweetheart to your partner and opponents.

(With thanks to Wikipedia for some of the info)

Masterpoint Races, 2014

Final Standings for the 2014 masterpoint races will be posted in early February. To see the final results, go to your Member Portal on ACBL's website and click on Masterpoint Races.

Always before, the medallions and certificates have been presented at Kentucky Dam Village Sectional, which has been permanently cancelled. Instead, awards will be presented to the winners this year at local clubs. If your name appears in one of the top three slots for Mini-McKenney or Ace of Clubs in Unit 223 and you have a preferred club to receive your presentation, please notify me with an email to finesse002002@yahoo.com

Reminder: The rank you held on Jan. 1, 2015 will be the rank you will be competing in for all of 2015 Masterpoint Races.

Rising in the Ranks�

Congratulations to the following Unit 223 players who have achieved new ranks.

Mark your new 2015 Calendars!�

Feb 2-8 -- District 8 Sectional Tournament at Clubs

April 10-12 -- Pioneer Sectional Tournament, Effingham IL

May 29-31 -- Sectional Tournament, Edwardsville IL

June 22-28 -- Crossroads Split-Regional, Effingham IL

Sept 4-6 -- Irvin Cobb Sectional Tournament, Paducah KY

Oct 2-4 -- Sectional Tournament, Caseyville IL

Oct 26-Nov 1 -- District 8 Sectional Tournament at Clubs