People
Meet the Tuesday blackjack crowd
Tuesday is the quiet night, and the blackjack table is its heart. Here's who sits there, what they argue about and why the scones always run out first.
Nobody can say exactly when the Tuesday crowd began. Megan McKenzie reckons it started with two retired farmers who came in for the pea and ham soup and stayed to watch a hand of blackjack. A fortnight later there were four of them, a month later seven, and now the end table in the card room has a small brass plate that nobody remembers ordering.
How the night goes
They arrive together at half past five, eat the soup and whatever pie is on, and walk through at seven like a small, well-fed parade. Megan deals slowly, explains every decision aloud and lets the newest player turn the first card, which is a tiny honour that nobody has ever turned down.
The great argument
Every Tuesday the table has the same debate about when to stand on sixteen. Megan, who used to teach maths, has the numbers on her side, and the regulars have decades of stubbornness on theirs. It's never been settled, and it's the main reason several of them keep coming.
Chips and company
Nothing's at stake. The chips are plain discs, worth nothing, so a bad run costs no more than a little pride. That frees the table up to be generous, to share what they've noticed and to laugh at their own mistakes. Several of them admit they can't remember who won last week, only who sat beside them.
Joining in
Come on a Tuesday, give your name to Vanessa and say you'd like the blackjack end table. A seat will be found. All they ask is that you arrive hungry, keep your phone in your pocket and be ready to hear at least one story about a tractor. The table has been known to pause in the middle of a hand for a second pot of tea, and nobody has ever complained about the delay.
What newcomers say
Most first-timers are surprised by how little they have to know. Megan talks through each decision, and the regulars add their own commentary from the side. A visitor from out of town said it was the friendliest table she'd ever sat at, and she stayed for three more hands than she'd planned.