Monopoly: The girls' rules

If you've been playing Monopoly for as long as I have, you've no doubt suffered through at least a few games with a Monopoly tycoon: someone who is determined to win at all costs and then photograph the board so that they can savour their win forevermore. That's how seriously some people — some relatives of mine — take the game. So you can imagine how much I enjoyed playing against two young Monopoly enthusiasts who have decided to modify the existing rules to emphasize helping out your neighbour when he's down on his luck. (I know: The game's inventor(s) would be shocked.)

The two girls in question — ages seven and eleven — are daughters of a friend of mine.  We were involved in a four-way game of Monopoly. There were actually five of us playing (the girls, their mom, my nine-year-old son and I), but my son and I were sharing a game piece because, initially, he had bowed out, figuring it was going to be just another force-your-friends-into-bankruptcy-and-show-no-mercy game of Monopoly. It wasn't until the play started and he saw that the rules were kinder and gentler than what he'd experienced in the past that he decided to get in the game.

The younger of the two girls who was teaching us the "new" Monopoly was enjoying one of those lucky streaks that manages to follow you to the Monopoly table every now and again. I don't think she ever picked up an unlucky card from any of the "Chance" or "Community Chest" piles, nor did she ever get hit with the $2,000 Boardwalk hotel tab. I think she had to pay income tax once or twice — taxes are as difficult to avoid in Monopoly as in real life — but I think she may have welcomed the opportunity to get rid of some of her extra cash. She had trouble keeping her mountains neatly stacked.

The rest of us, on the other hand, were definitely doing time on Hard Luck Alley. (Don't go looking for that address. You won't find it on even the funkiest new edition.) When we started to get really down on our luck — after a few trips around the board — the seven-year-old offered us discounted rates at her growing empire of hotel holdings (including some freebies and $1/night deals); shared her cash windfall when she landed on "Free Parking;" and otherwise ensured that each player was able to stay in the game as long as he or she wanted to play.

As it turned out, I was the first player to bow out of the game. I simply divided up my (fully mortgaged) properties and handed them over to the remaining players.

The free parking loot pile right before my friend's oldest daughter won it.

Apparently, the girls' monopoly rules have caught on with the rest of the members of their extended family. And why not? The alternative — telling kids not to share their money or to help others who are losing — seems like the wrong thing to do.

Hey! I think I'll invite a few of my Monopoly-tycoon relatives to go a few rounds with the "girls rules." I can't wait to see my Dad's face when I offer to pay his property taxes, or give him $500 cash or offer him a free night's stay at Park Place. Better grab my camera....

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