Brooklynite{s} of the Week.

THE 18TH AVENUE GAMING ASSOCIATION

 So no one said that the Brooklynite of the Week had to be world-famous. Regional notoriety is, of course, highly-valued here on FP.  In addition, it should be made clear that the honor need not be limited to the individual. Groups may also be considered, provided that they earn their notoriety as a such.  And, such is the case with this week's honorees.  Although they have been nameless as a group to this point, anyone who has walked, biked or driven northbound on Ocean Parkway passing 18th Avenue knows this crew.

     Although, I'm tempted to simply refer to the group as "Dees Gies" (admittedly based on a biased visual impression) I think they deserve a more stately title.  So I've decided to officially dub them The Eighteenth Avenue Gaming Association (EAGA) for the purposes of this entry. Members of EAGA gather to compete in marathon sessions of chess, gin-rummy and dominos and are willing to endure almost any weather conditions in pursue of the manly elation of a victory over an opponent.  Yet, perhaps what is most remarkable about this group is their ability to turn any mundane board game into a spectator sport.  There could be up to 25 or 30 mesmerized onlookers at any time.  While wagering is not prohibited by EAGA, openly doing so is frowned upon since the certain EAGA members are no strangers to holding tank at the 66th Precinct.  A precinct insider recalled that one overnight gambling detainment of 7 EAGA members left station house "smelling like seasoned old man soup for over a week."  Hence local officers tend to overlook any suspicious monetary exchanges at the tables.  The elders of the Association however still scowl at open wagering.

The Pigeon spends an afternoon as an EAGA spectator.

Boy did I get the poop on this guy.

 

*** While The Eighteen Avenue Gaming Association has no official requirements for membership, there are certain criteria which will make you a more desirable opponent. For one, participants should have reached their 70th birthday before considering entry into any contest sponsored by the club. Participants should be male or at least have a significant amount of whiskers. English-speaking is not at all a requirement although there is no specific shared language at the tables. In fact, it is most desirable that opponents speak different languages so that insults and vulgarities will not stir participants to violence.