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Notes on American Mahjong: the card, the table, and the sets that stay out.
October 13, 2026
A Fall Mahjong Night Checklist
Card, set, racks, light, and a second wall — the October version of leaving the table set.
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October 12, 2026
Buying a Used American Mahjong Set
Count to 160, name the jokers, check the faces, and do not pay heirloom prices for a 144-tile box.
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October 11, 2026
How to Teach Someone American Mahjong in One Night
One card family, the Charleston, and the three legal sets — save the rest of the card for wall two.
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October 10, 2026
How Long Does a Game of American Mahjong Take?
A wall is often 20–40 minutes. A night is two or three walls plus the Charleston, not a marathon unless you want one.
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October 9, 2026
American Mahjong Glossary: Card, Charleston, Soap, and Pie
The words you will hear at a U.S. table — without learning a second ruleset by accident.
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October 8, 2026
Mahjong Racks and Pushers: What an American Table Actually Needs
Racks first. Pushers if you have them. Four racks beat a beautiful box with none.
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October 7, 2026
How to Store an American Mahjong Set So It Gets Played
The case should live where you actually sit — not in a hall closet behind the wrapping paper.
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October 6, 2026
How to Clean Acrylic American Mahjong Tiles
A dry cloth, a barely damp wipe, and why oil and dishwashers ruin faces.
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October 5, 2026
How to Find an American Mahjong Group Near You
Libraries, senior centers, Nextdoor, and the question that matters: do they play the NMJL card.
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October 4, 2026
American Mahjong Etiquette: Talk, Hands, and Phones
Call the discard, keep your eyes on your own rack, and do not photograph someone else’s Flowers.
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October 3, 2026
When Does the New NMJL Card Come Out?
A new National Mah Jongg League card each year — last year’s lines are a different game.
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October 2, 2026
American Mahjong Scoring, Values, and Playing for Pie
The card prints the value. Pie is a shared pot. Decide the money talk before East rolls.
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October 1, 2026
How to Declare Mahjong in the American Game
Fourteen tiles that match one line on the card — say it, show it, and stop the wall.
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September 30, 2026
The Courtesy Pass and the Second Charleston
First Charleston is required. The courtesy pass and the second round are optional — and anyone may stop.
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September 29, 2026
How to Call a Tile in American Mahjong
Name it, claim it, expose the set — and only the most recent discard is available.
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September 28, 2026
Concealed vs Exposed Hands in American Mahjong
If the line is concealed, you cannot call discards except to go mahjong. Exposed lines want the table to hear you.
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September 27, 2026
Pung, Kong, and Quint in American Mahjong
Three, four, and five of a kind — what you may call, when you take a replacement, and why quints need jokers.
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September 26, 2026
What Is a Soap in American Mahjong?
Soap is the White Dragon — a blank-looking tile that is not a blank, and not a joker.
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September 25, 2026
Flowers and Dragons in American Mahjong
Eight Flowers, three Dragons, and why they are their own families on the card — not leftover honor tiles.
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September 24, 2026
American Mahjong vs Chinese Mahjong: Same Tiles, Different Night
160 tiles and a yearly card versus 144 tiles and remembered shapes — how to tell which game you are buying.
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September 23, 2026
American Mahjong Table Setup: Racks, Walls, and Room to Pass
How much space four racks need, where the card goes, and why the wall should not fight the snacks.
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September 22, 2026
Gifting an American Mahjong Set Without Guessing Wrong
Who already has a card, who needs racks, and how to pick a set they will leave out.
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September 21, 2026
Common American Mahjong Mistakes (and How the Table Fixes Them)
Passing jokers, calling for a pair, and chasing the whole card — the errors every new table makes.
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September 20, 2026
Why Acrylic American Mahjong Tiles Stay on the Table
Weight, color, cleaning, and what “inlaid” should actually mean when you shop.
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September 19, 2026
How to Host an American Mahjong Night at Home
Seats, light, the card, snacks that do not wreck tiles, and when to deal the second wall.
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September 18, 2026
American Mahjong for Beginners: Survive the First Night
What to say, what to pass, and what to ignore until the second wall.
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September 17, 2026
How to Read the National Mah Jongg League Card
Suits, exposures, values, and how to pick two lines after the Charleston.
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September 16, 2026
Jokers in American Mahjong: What They Can and Cannot Do
Wild for pungs, kongs, and quints — never for a single or a pair, unless the card says so.
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September 15, 2026
How Many Tiles Are in an American Mahjong Set?
160 including blanks — and why 144-tile listings are usually a different game.
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September 14, 2026
What Is American Mahjong?
A short answer for search and for the table: the NMJL card, 160 tiles, jokers, and the Charleston.
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July 23, 2026
Charleston Explained: The Pass That Makes the Table Social
Right, across, left — and why you never pass a joker — in language you can read at the table.
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June 11, 2026
What to Look For in an American Mahjong Set
Tile feel, jokers, racks, and the little details that decide whether the set stays on the table.
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May 14, 2026
The Difference Between American Mahjong, Chinese Mahjong, and Japanese Mahjong
Three games share a family of tiles. The card, the Charleston, riichi, and how you win are not the same night.
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