If you ask me, there is no better place to spend the summers than Wisconsin. My family loves to spend the mornings fishing and drinking coffee on the pier, the afternoons boating or hanging out poolside, and the evenings hosting friends for a dinner on the grill. Our core family summer memories seem to all revolve around perfect summer days at the lake.
The thing that stands out the most to me at the house is that we don’t watch TV or the ipads. We spend the days outside and laughing and telling stories and playing games.
The latest addition to the game playing is the women all playing mahjong. Of course, this is nothing new and you can find photos of women playing mahjong in the Catskills and on a floating table from nearly 100 years ago. But, until recently, this had been forgotten. We are playing all the games in 2025, including Wisconsin summer mahjong.
This game can be played with multiple generations and with any number of players. I want to be able to sit at the table with anyone and carry on a conversation during a friendly game. I want to connect… and I know I’m not alone.
My kids are pretty self-sufficient at 10 and 12, but I still have to take them to the pool and I prefer to be lakeside when they are. I like to model behavior for them, especially at the lake. I don’t want them to see me scrolling social media and texting my friends on my device. I want them to see me making new friendships, having intelligent conversations and playing games. Mahjong is a game that I love to play, but it is also something I want my kids to watch me play.
This summer, you are going to see me playing mahjong all over town. I’ll be playing mahjong at Fontana Beach. I’ll be playing mahjong at Pier 290 with an Aperol spritz. I’ll be playing mahjong in my mom’s screen porch on Lauderdale. I’ll be playing poolside in my backyard with my neighbors with coffee while the birds sing. I’ll be playing on the farm porch in East Troy while the fireflies light up the sky behind me.
Wisconsin summers are perfect. Adding the game of mahjong with old and new friends is just the cherry on top for 2025.
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