Purim: Best Time for a Game of Kings

Can't believe it's nearly Purim already. Which shouldn't be a surprise, given that this is a Jewish leap year and we've had an extra MONTH to prepare! But the daffodils are just now in full flower, brightening up the nearly consistent gray and rain here in the Northwest. The forsythia bushes are brilliant yellow as well, shocking the bland pavement and monochrome sky into embracing springtime.
Meanwhile, my family room is ablaze with a rainbow of tissue paper splaying from colorfully prepared bags of shaloch manos (food gifts for friends). Tomorrow night, we host a break-fast pot luck dinner party, this time featuring a new activity (beyond the "write a gramin song for the person whose name you drew out of the hat" that we enjoy every year). It's a college drinking game called "Kings" that for the evening we're calling "King Achashverosh" where cards drawn from a deck indicate silly behaviors to do that ultimately end in a swig. And laughs.

My sorority daughter has just regaled me with descriptions of drinking games. Not that she's played them all, but just about every college student finds out about them by osmosis. I WAS looking for something new and fun to play at our party. And if Purim isn't the occasion for a drinking game, then when? I'm going to provide some beverage selections, including a punch made from fruit sherbet, 7-Up and Cranberry juice, spiked with vodka. Save the recipe--it's yummy.

My wish for you is to have a "Chag Purim Sameach," a very happy Purim. And don't forget that every day of our survival is a miracle, even if it isn't always obvious.