LIFE USA TODAY ❚ WEDNESDAY, MARCH 18, 2020 ❚ 7B
It looks like we might be staying at
home for a while.
As the spread of the coronavirus
across the globe causes more people to
work remotely, social distance and self-
quarantine, keeping ourselves enter-
tained from our living rooms will be-
come a necessity as kids stay home
from school and parents stay out of the
office.
There are plenty of things to do while
at home, from heartwarming TV to in-
door fitness, but if you want to do some-
thing that involves the whole family, a
board game is the perfect activity.
Beyond the everyday stalwarts like
Clue and Life, there is an amazing world
of tabletop games, some of which you
may already own and some you could
(carefully and responsibly) buy to occu-
py yourselves during these tumultuous
times. We just recommend you stay
away from Pandemic the game, which,
fun as it is normally, probably isn’t the
best choice right now.
If you want something to play
with the kids: Telestrations
Like a combination of whisper game
Telephone and Pictionary, players alter-
nate between drawing something and
then writing what they see around a cir-
cle until the final drawing or description
comes out wildly different than what
everybody started with.
If you want something cute, quick
and wordy: Bananagrams
If Scrabble isn’t doing it for you, this
fruit-themed word-building game is a
great alternative.
Everyone tries to use small letter tiles
to build word grids faster than everyone
else. The tiles come in a fabric banana.
It’s never not fun.
If you are dipping your toes into
complex board games: Catan
A slightly more involved game thanRisk or Monopoly, Catan (previously
known as Settlers of Catan or Settlers)
has become popular in the past decade
or so beyond board game enthusiasts.
In the game, which has many expan-
sions available if you get bored of the
original, players become “settlers,” each
trying to build up individual settle-
ments while trading resources. The big-
ger your settlement, the more points,
and the first to a set number wins.If you love fantasy TV and film:
Lords of WaterdeepThis board game from the makers ofDungeons & Dragons is on the heavier
side of complexity but is one of the most
rewarding games once you understand
all the rules.
Beautifully designed in fantasy style,
Waterdeep is a “worker placement
game,” in which players use agents to
gather resources to complete quests,
which generate victory points. Whoever
has the most at the end of the game
wins.If you like strategy games but not
a fantasy aesthetic: Ticket to RideFantasy and science fiction aren’t ev-eryone’s preferred genre, and even
though it seems like most strategy
games are swords and sorcery-themed,
there are plenty that aren’t.
Ticket to Ride is an easy to under-
stand game that is about something as
simple as trains. Players use colored
train cars, that they are able to obtain by
collecting cards of the same color, to
create train routes across a map of the
U.S. (expansions have many other maps
to choose from).
Bigger train routes give you more
points at the end, and so does working
to complete secret ticket cards you draw
at the beginning of the game.THINGS TO DO AT HOME
Board games will help ease boredom
Kelly Lawler
USA TODAY
As schools close and more people work from home amid the coronavirus outbreak, we're looking for things to do at home
to keep busy. Board games are are great activity to involve the whole family. GETTY IMAGES© WIGGLES 3D GAMES
DON’T QUOTE ME®
Humorist Jack Handey Rearrange the words to complete the quote.
jokes about computers. BOX COMPUTER HUMANS MOST
SEALED THING UP WAREHOUSE
ONE___________A______________CAN DO THAT________
___________CAN’T IS BE___________ ________IN A
CARDBOARD________AND SIT IN A______________.
3/
Tuesday’s Answer: “When we ask for advice, we are
usually looking for an accomplice.” - Saul BellowTXTPERT
Across- 72737
- 227
- 29273
- 3478872
- 25277
Down- 737463
- 736
- 24247
- 723
- 278
- 465
- 287
3/Today’s theme
Classroom
Use the
phone
keypad to
decode the
clues.
For example:
2 could be A,
B or C ... and
5678 could
be LOST 3/
© USA TODAY and Rich Coulter Yesterday’s solution12
34567 89(^1) P ASS I V (^2) E
L A
E^3 CAR ING^4
A O N R
(^5) S HY (^6) S E
A^7 L IKE
(^8) N ASTY D
T^9 T RY
ACROSS
1 Fast, tawny felines
6 “Right away!”
9 In separate places
14 Pro wrestler Bliss
15 Shout of
realization
16 Oceangoing ship
17 Birthplace of the
espresso machine
18 Freight weight
19 Many a karaoke
song
20 Youmightstayup
to watch it
23 Prime number
factor
24 Cross (meet by
chance)
26 Past the expiration
date, perhaps
29 Unjustified
teachings
32 Enjoyed a bowl of
beef udon, say
34 It’s measured in
karats
36 Fahsa, for one
39 Princess voiced by
Aimee Carrero
40 Not forthcoming
41 Celebrity photog-
rapher Leibovitz
42 Mandible
44 Labor
organizations
45 Genesis matriarch
46 Shocking victory
48 WNBA scoreboard
stat (Abbr.)
49 Be a cast
member of
52 Down in the
dumps
54 Sheer chance
61 “Thelma & Louise”
star Davis
63 Brewpub selection
64 Use the pink end
of a pencil
65 Radio studio sign
66 Accompaniment
forskinnyjeans,
often
67 Nail (manicure
providers)
68 Like one-word
replies
69 and haw
70 “Nice!”
DOWN
1 Beach bucket
2 Sephora
competitor
3 Pork or turkey,
e.g.
4 Barbetween
wheels
5 Reject an offer
6 Magazine since
1888, for short
7 “I know! Pick me!”
8 Long for
9 Word of affection
in Waikiki
10 Plane worker
11 “Et cetera”
12 Outdoor gear
chain
13 Italian for “three”
21 500 (Memorial
Day weekend
event)
22 Filtered email
25 Oktoberfest mugs
26 Luxury watch
brand
27 “Understood?”
28 Wine and
30 Beams with pride
31 Month when the
Battle of Puebla is
commemorated
33 Fluffy farm
females
34 One-named
soccer great
35 Goop in pits
37 Officially
forbid
38 Quick scissor
cut
40 Lens protector
43 Trash
44 Home to many
Mormon
temples
47 Regard highly
50 Northernmost
African capital
51 “You can
always talk to
me”
53 Specifics,
informally
55 Courtroom pledge
56 Run away
57 Sketched
58 The Boston
Marathon, for one
59 Tennis legend
Arthur
60 “ Side Story”
61 Understood
62 Direction opposite
WSW
Answers: Call 1-900-988-8300, 99 cents a minute; or, with a credit card, 1-800-320-4280.
LAWBREAKERS
CROSSWORD
BYZhouqin Burnikel
Tuesday’s Answer
3/
© Andrews McMeel 3/
CROSSWORDS
ON YOUR PHONE
get our crossword app
EDITEDErik Agard
DIFFICULTY RATING
Complete the grid so that every row, column and 3x
boxcontainsthenumbers1through9(norepeats).
3/
3/
SUDOKU FUSION
ON YOUR PHONE
puzzles.usatoday.com
Completethegridsothateveryrow,columnand3x
boxcontainsthenumbers1through6(norepeats).
DIFFICULTY RATING
358
2516 79
72
8561
316
794 5
68
74 2183
129
31 4
3
136
36 1
3
542
342967581
59 1 328647
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289 143765
92563 1 478
8372549 16
1 64789352
346 1 52
25 1 6 34
6243 1 5
51 3246
43 2 5 6 1
165423
Tuesday’s Answers
SUDOKU
© Andrews McMeel
QUICKCROSS
By John Wilmes 3/
“Break Free” & “Stay” DJ
Always
Pop starlet
Sloppy one
Z’sintheU.K.
Villainous
“Whip It” & “Peek-a-
Boo!” band
Dull
Tuesday’s Answer
3/
SAPP
ELEE
TEAS
ASST
QUICKCROSS
ON YOUR PHONE
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NORTH
PLAY ONLINE
PUZZLES.USATODAY.COM
UP & DOWN WORDS
ByDavidL.HoytandRussellL.Hoyt
Vehicle for many
passengers
Public transit place
Cease doing your job
Burning the midnight oil
Stephen Colbert program
Arrive
The U.S., to Mexico
Clues: Tuesday’s Answer
DIVE
BAR
CODE
RED
RIVER
PHOENIX
ARIZONABAR
CODE
RED
RIVER
PHOENIX
ARIZONA
CARDINALSGREYHOUND3/© Andrews McMeelLJWSNAILJSCJ
NUC L DVAH Y U R L
OL L POCMEMP E I
CENL I YNTAOTT
ABVGROAWL T S E
BAOXHKHL CCYR
EL IZABETHOOA
KCBV I CTOR I ALWORD ROUNDUP
By David L. Hoyt and Jeff KnurekTuesday’s answer: ORCHID DAISY LILAC LILY / CLOUDY SUNNY
WINDY HAZY / PURPLE MAROON ORANGE / EARTH MARCH
GAMMA / EDISON3/
Find and Circle:
Five words starting and ending with L ☑☐☐☐☐
Four mollusks ☐☐☐☐
TwoBritishqueens ☐☐
Syrupy substance from bees ☐
____ and eggs ☐© Andrews McMeelPUZZLES
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