Chinese Zodiac

Unlike the Western or Indian zodiacs, the Chinese zodiac signs are not derived from constellations, and are not assigned to sections of the ecliptic. Instead, Chinese astrological signs operate on cycles of years, lunar months, and two-hour periods of the day (also known as shichen). A particular feature of the Chinese zodiac is its operation in a sixty year cycle in combination with the five elements of Chinese astrology (Wood, Fire, Metal, Water, and Earth). Nevertheless some researches says that there is obvious relationship between Chinese 12-year cycle and zodiac constellations: each year of the cycle corresponds to the certain disposal of Jupiter. For example, in the year of Snake Jupiter is in the Sign of Gemini, in the year of Horse Jupiter is in the Sign of Cancer and so on. So Chinese 12-year calendar is solar-lunar-jupiteriar calendar.

Zodiac Symbolism

The following table shows the twelve signs and their attributes.

Sign	Yin/Yang	Direction	Season	Fixed Element	Trine
Rat	Yang	North	Winter	Water	1st
Ox	Yin	North	Winter	Water	2nd
Tiger	Yang	East	Spring	Wood	3rd
Rabbit	Yin	East	Spring	Wood	4th
Dragon	Yang	East	Spring	Fire	1st
Snake	Yin	South	Summer	Fire	2nd
Horse	Yang	South	Summer	Fire	3rd
Goat	Yin	South	Summer	Fire	4th
Monkey	Yang	West	Autumn	Metal	1st
Rooster	Yin	West	Autumn	Metal	2nd
Dog	Yang	West	Autumn	Metal	3rd
Pig	Yin	North	Winter	Water	4th

子 Rat (Yang, 1st Trine, Fixed Element Water): Rat years include 1900, 1912, 1924, 1936, 1948, 1960, 1972, 1984, 1996, 2008. The month of the Rat is Dec 7 - Jan 5, and the hours of the Rat are 11pm - 1am. 丑 Ox (Yin, 2nd Trine, Fixed Element Water): Ox years include 1901, 1913, 1925, 1937, 1949, 1961, 1973, 1985, 1997, 2009. The month of the Ox is Jan 6 - Feb 3, and the hours of the Ox are 1am - 3am. 寅 Tiger (Yang, 3rd Trine, Fixed Element Wood): Tiger years include 1902, 1914, 1926, 1938, 1950, 1962, 1974, 1986, 1998, 2010. The month of the Tiger is Feb 4 - Mar 5, and the hours of the Tiger are 3am - 5am. 卯 Rabbit (Yin, 4th Trine, Fixed Element Wood): Rabbit Years include 1903, 1915, 1927, 1939, 1951, 1963, 1975, 1987, 1999, 2011. The month of the Rabbit is Mar 6 - Apr 4, and the hours of the Rabbit are 5am - 7am. 辰 Dragon (Yang, 1st Trine, Fixed Element Wood): Dragon years include 1904, 1916, 1928, 1940, 1952, 1964, 1976, 1988, 2000, 2012. The month of the Dragon is Apr 5 - May 4, and the hours of the Dragon are 7am - 9am. 巳 Snake (Yin, 2nd Trine, Fixed Element Fire): Snake years include 1905, 1917, 1929, 1941, 1953, 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001, 2013. The month of the Snake is May 5 - Jun 5, and the hours of the Snake are 9am - 11am. 午 Horse (Yang, 3rd Trine, Fixed Element Fire): Horse years include 1906, 1918, 1930, 1942, 1954, 1966, 1978, 1990, 2002, 2014. The month of the Horse is Jun 6 - Jul 6, and the hours of the Horse are 11am - 1pm. 未 Goat (Yin, 4th Trine, Fixed Element Fire): Goat years include 1907, 1919, 1931, 1943, 1955, 1967, 1979, 1991, 2003, 2015. The month of the Goat is Jul 7 - Aug 7, and the hours of the Goat are 1pm - 3pm. 申 Monkey (Yang, 1st Trine, Fixed Element Metal): Monkey years include 1908, 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992, 2004, 2016. The month of the Monkey is Aug 8 - Sep 7, and the hours of the Monkey are 3pm - 5pm. 酉 Rooster (Yin, 2nd Trine, Fixed Element Metal): Rooster years include 1909, 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017. The month of the Rooster is Sep 8 - Oct 7 and the hours of the Rooster are 5pm - 7pm. 戌 Dog (Yang, 3rd Trine, Fixed Element Metal): Dog years include 1910, 1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994, 2006, 2018. The month of the Dog is Oct 8 - Nov 7, and the hours of the Dog are 7pm - 9pm. 亥 Pig (Yin, 4th Trine, Fixed Element Water): Pig years include 1911, 1923, 1935, 1947, 1959, 1971, 1983, 1995, 2007, 2019. The month of the Pig is Nov 8 - Dec 6, and the hours of the Pig are 9pm - 11pm. The Five Elements The elements differ in Chinese astrology from their Western counterparts: Air is not one of the elements as defined by the Chinese. Instead, Wood and Metal are elements alongside Fire and Water. In addition, the elements also govern various aspects of one's personality, and are assigned to various other things such as directions (North, South, East and West), colors, seasons and planets. The characteristics of the four elements are as follows: Metal: The metal person is rigid and resolute in expression and intense, with strong feelings. The direction associated with Metal is West, and the season is autumn, which makes it the fixed element for the animal signs Monkey, Rooster and Dog. Water: The water person is a good communicator and persuader, intuitive and sympathetic to others and good at conveying feelings and emotions. The direction associated with Water is North, and the season is winter, which makes it the fixed element for the animal signs Pig, Rat and Ox. Wood: The wood person has high morals, is self confident, expansive and co-operative, with wide and varied interests. The direction associated with Wood is East, and the season is spring, which makes it the fixed element for the animal signs Tiger, Rabbit and Dragon. Fire: The fire person has leadership qualities, and is decisive, self confident, positive and assertive. The direction associated with Fire is South, and the season is summer, which makes it the fixed element for the animal signs Snake, Horse and Sheep. Earth: The five elements operate together with the twelve animal signs in a sixty year calendar. The four elements appear in the calendar in both their yin and yang forms and are known as the eight heavenly stems. When trying to calculate the relevant year of the cycle in relation to the Western calendar, an easy rule to follow is that years that end in an even number are yang, those that end with an odd number are yin.

Playing Cards - Poker Hands

Playing Cards - Face Cards

Playing Cards - Historical Personage

Playing Card	Historical Personage
King of Hearts	Charlemagne
Queen of Hearts	Judith (of the Book of Judith, an Apocryphal Book of the Bible)
Jack of Hearts	"La Hire," a famous French warrior a.k.a. Etienne de Vignoles
King of Spades	King David
Queen of Spades	Pallas, a.k.a. Minerva
Jack of Spades	Hogier the Dane, one of Charlemagne's paladins
King of Diamonds	Julius Caesar
Queen of Diamonds	Rachel (of the Bible)
Jack of Diamonds	Hector of Troy alternately, Roland of France
King of Clubs	Alexander the Great
Queen of Clubs	Argine An anagram of Regina
Jack of Clubs	Lancelot

Birth Stones

Wedding Anniversary

Year	Traditional (U.S.)	Traditional (U.K.)	Modern (U.S.)
1st	Paper	Cotton	Clocks
2nd	Cotton	Paper	China
3rd	Leather	Leather	Crystal, Glass
4th	Linen, Silk	Fruit and Flower	Appliances (electrical)
5th	Wood	Wooden	Silverware
6th	Iron	Sugar	Wood objects
7th	Wool, Copper	Woollen	Desk sets/Pen & Pencil sets
8th	Bronze	Salt	Linens, Lace
9th	Pottery, China	Copper	Leather goods
10th	Tin, Aluminum	Tin	Diamond jewelry
11th	Steel		Fashion jewelry, accessories
12th	Silk	Silk and Fine Linen	Pearls, Colored gems
13th	Lace		Textiles, Furs
14th	Ivory		Gold jewelry
15th	Crystal	Crystal	Watches
16th	Tourmaline		Silver Holloware
17th	Furniture		Furniture
18th	Turquoise		Porcelain
19th	Aquamarine		Bronze
20th	China	China	Platinum
21st			Brass, Nickel
22nd			Copper
23rd			Silver plate
24th	Opal		Musical Instruments
25th	Silver	Silver	Silver
30th	Pearl	Pearl	Diamond
35th	Coral, Jade	Coral	Jade
40th	Ruby	Ruby	Ruby
45th	Sapphire		Sapphire
50th	Gold	Gold	Gold
55th	Emerald		Emerald
60th	Diamond (Yellow)	Diamond	Diamond
65th		Blue Sapphire	Star Sapphire (Gray)
70th		Platinum
75th	Diamond, Gold		Diamond, Gold
80th	Oak
90th			Granite

Monopoly

MONOPOLY  TRIVIA:

In 1935 Monopoly was first published by Parker Brothers.

The Landlord's Game is the name of the game on which Charles Darrow, Monopoly's purported inventor, based his design.

Germantown, Pennsylvania was Charles Darrow's hometown.

Lizzie J. Magie designed and patented the game on which Monopoly was based.

40 squares are on a standard Monopoly board.

In an average game, the B&O Railroad is landed on most often.

In the U.S. version of Monopoly, the Atlantic City street name Marvin Gardens is misspelled.

In 1999, there was worldwide vote for a new player token. Of the 3 choices, the Money Bag beat out the Biplane and Piggy Bank as the new player token added to all new standard Monopoly sets.

Today, a new copy of the standard edition of Monopoly comes with:
      • the battleship
      • cannon
      • dog
      • horse and rider
      • iron
      • racecar
      • sack of money
      • shoe
      • thimble
      • top hat
      • wheelbarrow



The distribution of cash in the U.S. version has changed with the newer release versions. Older versions had a total of $15,140 in the following amounts/colors:

• 20 $500 Bills (orange)
• 20 $100 Bills (beige)
• 30 $50 Bills (blue)
• 50 $20 Bills (green)
• 40 $10 Bills (yellow)
• 40 $5 Bills (pink)
• 40 $1 Bills (white)

The newer (September 2008) editions have a total of $20,580, with 30 of each bill denomination. In addition, the colors of some of the bills have been changed; $10s are now blue instead of yellow, $20s are a brighter color green than before, and $50s are now purple instead of blue.
Each player begins the game with his or her token on the Go square, and $1,500 (or 1,500 of a localized currency) in play money. Prior to September 2008, the money was divided as follows in the U.S. standard rules:

• Two each of:
  
  
  • $500 bills
  • $100 bills
  • $50 bills
• Six $20 bills
• Five each of:
  
  
  • $10 bills
  • $5 bills
  • $1 bills

Since then, the US version has taken on the British version's initial cash distributions of:

• Two x $/£500
• Four x $/£100
• One x $/£50
• One x $/£20
• Two x $/£10
• One x $/£5
• Five x $/£1

Other items included in the standard edition are:

       A Title Deed for each property. A Title Deed is given to a player to signify ownership, and specifies purchase price, mortgage value, the cost of building houses and hotels on that property, and the various rent prices depending on how developed the property is. Properties include:

• 22 streets, divided into 8 color groups of two or three streets. A player must own all of a color group (commonly mistaken for being called a monopoly) in order to build houses or hotels. If a player wants to mortgage one property of a color-group, not only must any houses or hotels be removed from that property, but from the others in the color-group as well.
• 4 railways. Players collect $25 rent if they own one station, $50 if they own two, $100 if they own three and $200 if they own all four. These are usually replaced by railway stations in non-U.S. editions of Monopoly.
• 2 utilities. Rent is four times dice value if player owns one utility, but 10 times dice value if player owns both. Hotels and houses cannot be built on utilities or stations.

There are a deck of 16 Chance cards and a deck of 16 Community Chest cards. Players draw these cards when they land on the corresponding squares of the track, and follow the instructions printed on them.