It’s been happening under the slanted roof of the Polynesian Paradise clubhouse for decades.

Old and young residents and guests gather a few times each month for old-school, low-tech Arizona fun.

They flock there to play BINGO on Wednesday nights in January, February and March when the snowbirds have returned.

Spirits are high, but stakes are low.

Fifty or sixty friends and neighbors huddle over long metal tables with wooden tops. They scan their BINGO boards with dreams of leaving with fifteen or twenty dollars in their pockets.

Hit the switch and you can hear the hum of the BINGO ball cage as it spins. The caller pulls a number and announces it over the microphone. B-15, O-66, and so on.

Over the years, the number callers have come and gone. Phyllis and Sherry shared the duties admirably on January 31, 2024.

Last night’s first game was dedicated to Bill H. He passed last year. In his honor, you had to cover all the numbers on one of your boards to fill the shape of the letter H to win $10.

After that, each game was more traditional. You needed to get five in a row across, up and down, or diagonally to win $5.

Or–if you were lucky enough to cover the four corners or create a “postage stamp”–a four-square shape in one of the corners–that would suffice too.

The final game of the night is always “black-out” BINGO. The goal is to cover every space on your card. The first one to do it, shouts BINGO and wins $20.

Last night, two–Theo and John–landed there at the same time and shared the winnings.

But the beauty of BINGO isn’t really the amount of cash you win.

It’s about the shared experience of sitting side-by-side in the same room.

It’s about the kitschy camaraderie, silly laughter, and goofy cross talk before, during, and after each game.

It’s about celebrating the “what ifs” of life … “Oh, if only she’d called I-30. I would have been the big winner!” … no matter your political preferences or social status.

It’s about the realization that the small, yummy square of lemon cake Jean baked for consumption at the half-way point contained a splash of zesty lemon from one of our luscious community citrus trees.

It’s about the reminiscing with friends as you walk back home to your respective condos at the end of the day on a mild desert evening.

It’s about hugging and bidding each other a good night … until the next game of BINGO.