A single-player game to build

My grandparents were strict. Born in the 1920s, they spent their youth during and after the Second World War. Comfort, even luxury, were not common terms for them. As a child, I was only allowed to watch television when my grandfather was watching the news. Otherwise, reading, shopping with my grandmother, going to church or playing games with my sister were the order of the day. When she didn't feel like playing with me, to keep myself occupied, I would take a square piece of wood with squares arranged in the shape of a cross. The solitaire.

32 counters are spread over 33 squares, leaving an empty square in the middle. In fact, it's a reverse journey to Jerusalem. The aim is to use a pawn to jump over another pawn, which is then removed from the game. Pieces can only jump vertically and horizontally, but not diagonally. At the end of the game, there must be only one piece left, and it must be exactly in the middle of the board. I never succeeded. Ambition and frustration have always been very close to each other.

An alternative to puzzles

At the moment, despite all the frustration I felt when I was younger, I miss this game. I live alone and spend all my days working in front of my computer. I translate: in the evening, it's impossible to look at a single screen, I'm overdosing. That's why I suddenly felt like playing board games again. Normally, this happens as rarely as a craving for fennel tea or a marathon. But my newly-fired gaming instincts are immediately put to the test. I'm alone - most games require at least two people. Puzzles are out of the question, I hate them. If, one day, you catch me at home, on the floor, trying to put the pieces together, please interpret that as a cry for help. My forties have definitely succeeded in making me lose my mind. But since it hasn't yet, my thoughts end up with my grandparents and little Caro playing solitaire.

To replay the scene, I need:

• a piece of wood
• a saw
• of a drill
• of wooden dowels
• sandpaper or a puncher
• de vernis pour bois

The hardest part: branding

First I choose a piece of wood and lay down all the markings. In the end, the square should be 18 centimetres by 18 centimetres. The cross-shaped game board has 33 squares: three rows of seven squares each from top to bottom and the same from left to right. To do this, I mark the centre of each side and draw another point two centimetres to the left and right of it. Then I connect all the dots to form straight lines. I set the first points where the straight lines cross in the middle. From there, I mark the other points, always with a distance of two centimetres between them. Only then do I cut my piece of wood. You can of course also do this at the beginning and mark the holes afterwards.

I drill the holes so that they are slightly larger than my wooden pegs. They shouldn't be too deep: half the dowel should stick out so you can still grip it. Once the 33 holes have been drilled, I sand the corners and edges of the game board. I do this by hand with a grinding wheel, but you can also use a sander. Once the game board is smooth and even, apply a coat of varnish to protect the wood and make it more durable. Be careful not to fill the holes with varnish. It's better to use the brush several times than to apply just one generous coat. If you still get varnish in the holes, remove it carefully.

Party vs party

It's already over. When everything's dry, there's nothing standing in the way of a first game of solitaire. Since the duels against myself at my grandmother's house, I haven't improved, unfortunately. But I'm still having fun. In addition to Netflix, books and small projects, I finally have a game to liven up my evenings in these self-isolating moments.