By J.W. Mohr

Winter's doldrums can be maddening. There is just no cure-all for feeling cut off from the world during a snowy shut-in while beginning to suffer the insane stages of cabin fever. However, if you are to go mad, you might as well have fun... and why go it alone? Our intellects can only endure so many self-absorbed amusements like TV watching, video game playing or even long spells of book reading! The mind craves something more... but what?

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens an other." Argue the truth if you want to, but as much as we need our solitary enjoyments, we likewise need to interact with others on an interpersonal level. Long periods of television can leave one feeling positively useless and lethargic. An overdose of video games puts one irritably on edge. Our minds crave the opportunity to exercise!

To impress wit, to flex intellect, and to banter emotions with the mind-strengthening counterparts of our family and friends is just the cure needed to satisfy and stimulate.

Thus, for just such a time as this, the board game was created.

Board games have a way of igniting an ambience of wonder and excitement in children and adults alike. Similar to mime games and card games, board games force players to interact on multi- facetted levels. Players must study one another, they must perceive their opponent's strategies, predict their moves, and at the same time, mind you, try to formulate their own game- winning maneuver. Although it sounds quite complicated, it is all meant in simple, old-fashioned fun. Even children seem to be in tune with the simplicities of playing a good game. Many adults tell the tale of being co-horsed every day by repeated pleas of "Let's play Monopoly!" Risk is another long time favorite that happens to find its way out of the game closet and onto the kitchen table, as do Scrabble and Trivial Pursuit. It seems that every household has a chosen favorite, but make no mistake, it is always one accompanied with a set of "family household " rules! Apparently, depending on whose turf you find yourself on, game rules distinctively vary home-field advantage, one might say.

In the spirit of the game, it is thrilling to be challenged in a non-threatening way. Whether competing individually or as joined combative alliances, the art and science that goes into a board game evokes the friendliest of family feuds... mostly! Such friendly competition can be quite revealing. Not only is our skill on the line, but our character and maturity is dually noted as well. Depending on how well we measure up, we earn titles like "Good Sport" or "Poor Looser," "Cheater " or "Winner," or even the infamous "Cry Baby!"

That, however, is the supreme joy of playing a board game. Great boasts of victory are hailed for what seems like hours. We fall in somber defeat dramatically off of our chairs. We celebrate our cunning wit and make light of our flaws, sometimes even flaunting our ability to make a stupid move, yet we always laugh about it with those closest to our hearts. These are the purposes of striking up a good board game on a cold winter's night and enjoying the "maddening fun" of the company surrounding you. So go ahead and choose your favorite board game, take a "Family Time Out," and make the most of sharing some intellectual quality time with the ones you love.

Here are a few of our picks for great family fun. Some of these games are old favorites and some are new. Either choice, you and your family will enjoy hours of quality time together.

Editor's Top Picks

Scene it? Jr. The DVD Game The world's first DVD board game for ages 8 to adult. Scene It? Jr. is packed with popular movie and TV scenes, visual puzzlers, movie trivia, musical artists and athletes. It's cool, fun entertainment that you won't find in any other game out there! Requires a DVD player Players: 2-8 individuals or teams Ages: 8 to Adult

Trivial Pursuit Trivial Pursuit Junior - 5th Edition Game Ages: 8 to Adult Trivial Pursuit - Lord of the Rings Movie Trilogy Ages: 13 to Adult Trivial Pursuit - Disney Animated Picture Edition Game Ages: 6 to Adult Trivial Pursuit - 90's Time Capsule Edition Ages: 12 to Adult

Life A 2002 Parents' Choice Classic Award Winner. You've got to go where life leads you and this Life leads to lots of laughs! Spin the wheel of fate, then drive your car token along the hilarious game path of fortune. Your goal is to dodge bad luck and make a buck! Retire with the biggest fortune, and you'll win! On the way, pick up valuable Life Tiles for good deeds. Find out if you'll go to college...have children...produce a rock video... get tattoos removed... or go on a tropical vacation! You never know what Life has in store for you-it's different every time you play! Players: 2 to 6 players Ages: 9 to Adult

Scrabble A 2002 Parents' Choice Classic Award Winner. Everyone starts out with 7 tiles. The object of the game is to score as many points as you can by forming words from the letters on the tiles. Carefully decide where you want to place your words. Bonus squares on the board will give you double or triple the value for a particular letter in your word. Some let you earn double or triple values for the entire word! Use all 7 tiles in your hand and score 50 bonus points. Great fun for the whole family! Players: 2-4 players Ages: 8 to Adult

Apples To Apples Junior
The Game of Funny Comparisons
Award Winning Fun for Kids!

Younger players will expand their vocabulary and thinking skills as they delight in funny comparisons. Easy to learn and fun to play, it's the perfect game for kids, families and friends!

Players: 4 -10
Ages: 7 to Adult

Cranium
Cranium is a hip and outrageously fun board game that brings friends and family together through a variety of activities celebrating your whole brain! Whether you're an actor, artist, data hound or wordsmith, Cranium gives you and your team a moment to shine. Each turn, your team will harness its collective brainpower to advance around the board. The first team to reach Cranium Central wins the game!

Players: 4 or more
Ages: 13 to Adult

Monopoly
Players go around the board buying properties and collecting rent. Get a complete set of like-colored properties and you can start building houses and hotels. Chance cards along the way can either help you build your fortune or cost you money. Land on Free Parking and you win the jackpot! Land on the wrong space, and it's off to Jail for you! Either way, you're sure to have fun with this classic game.

Players: 2 to 10 players.
Ages: 8 to Adult

Card Games

SET - The Family Game of Visual Perception
SET is an addictive, highly original game of perception and logic, and a fascinating challenge for either solitaire or competitive play.

Each of the game's 81 cards has one, two, or three symbols. They may be ovals, squiggles, or diamonds, red, green or purple, and either solid, striped, or open. The object is to find "sets," which are defined as combinations of three cards where each of the four attributes - number, shape, color, or shading - is either the same on each card or different on each card. In other words, if any attribute is shared by two cards, it must be shared by the third. It's a simple concept, but an oddly elusive one.

Ages: 6 to Adult

Deluxe Pit Card Game
PIT, a fast-paced card game has been a top performer since its introduction in 1904. With all of its ups and downs, desperate deals, and nonstop action of an actual trading floor, this lively game offers great fun without risking the family fortune. Deal the cards, wait for the opening bell, then scream and trade like crazy! Be the first to corner a specific market (nine cards of the same suit), and ring the closing bell. Sounds pretty realistic, doesn't it? After you've mastered the basic game, throw the Bull and Bear cards into the mix and watch as things get more interesting!

Number Of Players: 3 to 8
Ages: 7 to Adult