30 Seconds the game that brings families together


One of the games we all love to play and for once a game I am actually quite good at. We have big family and friend get togethers and bring out the game 30 SECONDS

The rules are basic.


You have 30 seconds to complete the 5 questions. You throw the dice and by the numbers shown you either have to get to move right away or have to get 1 or 2 questions right before you can move.


We play this game and try our very best to get the five questions right in the allotted time. The thing is, when we have Bern’s mom on our team we have learnt that we need to give her extended time as she suffers from fits of giggles as she watched her children and grandchildren play the game and this is the best time for her.

One time she was laughing so much she asked if we closed our eyes when we laughed as she was unable to keep her open with the tears streaming down her face.

She asks us "Can you keep your eyes open when you Laugh?" She is so sweet and of course the family ridiculed her and closed their eyes tight to show her what she looked like.


Bern’s family is very completive in all games, be it cards, board games, charades bingo or even tidily winks. So the game is on and no one escapes the wrath of the winning team.


One of the clues was Mary Magdalene. She was the fallen woman who had followed Jesus in the biblical times.


Bern’s mom is an avid church goer and was only to please to be given this clue to explain. She smiled broadly and said;


“She was the whore who Jesus saved”

To which her son Michael answered with great enthusiasm as he actually knew this one. He shouted out “Veronica!”

Now if you know your bible stories; Veronica was one his followers and when he was on his way Calvary she wiped his face with a cloth she had with her. According to the bible his facial imprint was left on the cloth.


This is not the hysterical part; it was the family’s reaction to Michael’s answer.


"Michael, remind me never to offer you help!" Before I know it you will be calling me a whore. Bern's mom was unable to say a word as the tears streamed down her face and she tried to admonish him for not knowing his bible stories. This made us laugh even more as he is in his forties and was being scolded like a five year old.


It’s always interesting to see how people come up with words to describe the given clue, the best one is: Tokyo Sexwhale. Bern's niece tried to explain it by describing the movie "Free Willie” and I will leave the rest to your imagination. No one got the clue, but we did enjoy the actions.

Sarah tried to explain Madrid which is the capital of Italy. This of course had us all rolling on the floor laughing and we asked her when Madrid had moved. Sarah looked at us in confusion and said "But Madrid is the Capital of Italy"

When playing this game, the timer gets stuck and then all hell breaks loose. So now we play with two timers. No One trusts anyone when there is winning at stake. The timer also gets banged down on the table an awful lot to make it run faster! Oh the joys of a competitive Family.


Bern and I are champions in this game, and if the Hooligan Juice is flowing, I become Super Intelligent. So omniscient that I believe my clues are simple.


There was one time when I could not believe that Bern could not work it out. I told her that it’s when people are "being made fun of";

I was getting so excited and kept on saying the same thing over and over again. We did not win that game. The clue was Candid Camera; simple I thought but my consumption of Hooligan Juice impaired my ability to impart my absolute brilliance. That clue could very well describe how often I make fun of myself without any effort required.


We had a stunning little paved are in our garden in Johannesburg and had many an evening’s entertainment there. The big outside fire place, the chairs arranged around the fire and of course 30 Seconds always made a guest appearance. Have you ever noticed how loud people become as the rivers of alcohol flow and how funny everything becomes. It was not long before 30 Seconds turned into Kings the drinking game.


One of the tasks set by the God or Boss who was Sarah this time (I think – memory not so clear here) of the Game was that we had to take a card and hold it on our lips by sucking in and then pass it to the person on our right. This particular evening we had our friend Shell visiting, who I have told you is very attractive. The men clamored to be the one she passed the card to!


Sounds simple enough, suck the card to your lips until you are close enough to blow the card onto your neighbours lips. Ever tried that when you are a little bit under the influence. This evening turned into raucous hysteria Kings was forgotten as we were determined to get it right.


The card was mutilated by the end of the evening. Needless to say Shell managed to be kissed quite a few times on her lips by the males who kept on swopping and of course this was UNINTENTIONAL - NOT SO MUCH!