A little while not too long ago, I found myself stuck in the last place I would expect with a smartphone, a bridge game, and the bulk of an entire night to kill.

I was at hospital after accompanying my partner in a rushed ambulance, and was stuck for all practical purposes. I had no intention of being out of earshot from an intercom, nurse, or security guard – and thus, I picked a spot.

Thankfully it wasn’t a cold night, and superior packing skills meant that I was more or less prepared for a night in the wilderness (and so, a rooftop would be okay for a while).

For the record, it didn’t take long to break out the bridge game.

Here are some lessons learned about online bridge (from a rooftop).

Hey, There’s Better Reception Up Here

It’s not that hard to guess that reception would be better in the middle of the city, over anywhere the signal had anything else to bounce around. At home, basic reception was a nightmare – but here, I had a few moments of signal-related serenity.

What did it teach in the long-term?

If your online bridge connection keeps dropping, try changing the location from which you play bridge.

If that location has to be the roof, consider another service provider.

Online Bridge Is Really For Anywhere

After a while spent playing, I realized that I didn’t find the setting uncomfortable. The night was almost serenely quiet. Would I have been as comfortable stacking out a full deck of cards, and then finding four people to play a game with? Probably not, to be honest.

Online bridge can really be played almost anywhere.

I mean, here I was, winning (and losing) games on a hospital rooftop.

Many Minds Need Bridge

From one corner, I could spot incoming ambulances and patients turning to the hospital from the highway.

It was the kind of busy that you could expect from a weekend’s worth of hospital traffic. Even though it was expected, it was still an eye-opener. I saw many minds that could use the engagement (and sometimes, the brief distraction) of a good bridge game.

It gave me just the more reason to introduce more people to the game.

Bridge Helps

There have been many moments in my life where bridge has been a literal lifesaving distraction. I can say that this night might very well have been one of them.

While there’s nothing like seeing sunrise from a rooftop, I might have been asleep long before if it had not been for online bridge.

Online bridge can help. Research shows that it is excellent to occupy the mind, build memory, and reduce stress. I knew that before ending up on the rooftop, but I believed it so much more when I started to see the sun.

The Value Of Powerbanks

Electricity is a scare, valuable resource – and in the midst of a hospital, a lack of resources is something one cannot help but notice.

Powerbanks (and specifically, solar ones that build their charge during the day in a sunny area) can save lives. It can be someone’s important phone call, or your own. It can be the reason your phone remains on (and reachable) in an emergency where only you can be called.

I’ve recommended them for a while, and this was very good reason to continue doing so.